Olive Rabedew - 1895-1911
Poem 4
Olive Rabedew
1895-1911
Trudy and I both knew
Both knew and experienced
The voracious vertigo of secret love.
Homework was done together
In the soft lamplight
Of crisp autumn nights.
Plaid ginghams were sewn together
In the wilting afternoon sunlight
Of long forgotten summer days.
Hand-held strolls were surreptitiously taken
In the forbidden fields, and
In the concealed canyons.
Pursed caresses were exchanged
In the innocent dooryards, and
In the curious kitchens
Behind closed oaken doors.
But our Lord decreed in 1911
That our love would desist.
That our intense times together
Would terminate for eternity.
Trudy dearest, let it be known now:
True love is a blossoming tree
Which yields many kinds of fruit.
Our harvest together then,
Is our legacy, Our last
And final stand for freedom.
|