SpinFlower

 Poems are a warm cup of tea for the soul
-Poetry time! Here is a true story I wrote down,in poetry form.This is the story of my kindred spirit,Dorothy who is in her 80's. She has the best stories. She told me this one over orange sherbet and vanilla ice cream. She says that is the best combination,anyways-

I grew up in Arkansas

We were as poor as mice

My daddy promised me a horse

He promised me a piano

But we were lucky to have food on the table

When our shoes wore out he would cut the leather out

and place cardboard in our little shoes

My feet would freeze when I walked to school

my heart crack when the kids teased me

I wanted to wear princess dresses

but my mom could barely patch together rags

every year we went to the city

to a crusty man on a corner with an ugly brown pickup

I hated that truck

The trunk was filled with old dusty clothing and ragged shoes

He would look at me and my siblings and pick up things

He would motion to my mom when he thought he find something to fit us

and then throw it into our arms

I despised that he wouldn't even look into my eyes

he just threw my clothing like I  had no say

because I didn't

But one day he picked up a pink dress

the skirt was covered in chiffon petals

light as air

the sleeves were pink and petaled

it was a fairy dress

and it was all mine

the most beautiful dress I had ever seen

and when I wore it I would spin around the lawn

watching the petals swirl around my little frame

The world a blur I would twirl and twirl

I was convinced if I twirled hard enough

for long enough

I would become a flower

I twirled till I felt I would puke

till I collapsed on the ground

We had  a seesaw

and my brother would spin around it

as fast as he could

and I would watch my dress dancing around me

see if my legs had become a stem

but I never became a flower

and finally the dress outgrew me

it pulled against the chest

was ragged at the bottom and frayed

I grew up

I had children and a husband

but I never forgot the dress

and in my dreams I would still see myself in the twirling pink dress

I woke up every three years or so from a dream

where I was little again, spinning, waiting to be a flower

Life passed

Children grew

my husband passed away

and I would spend nights on a swing swaying back and forth

under the full moon

thinking

But one night I had the dream again

I was covered in the pink dress

little

spinning to be a flower

and I woke up

Woke up at 2:47 am

and sighed in bed

But somewhere deep inside me

I heard a voice

felt a voice

in the depths of my heart

He said

"Dorothy, you don't have to spin anymore.

You are already a flower in my garden."