Good intentions overshadowed by grief....




IMPROPER TEA PARTY

 

 

Sunshine. Coffee, Tea, 
Some bread... and Jam... 
And my unhappy mother.
At the end of the garden
Not long after my Father died.
My wife playing mother
Buttering the baguette.
And I at being a photographer!
Mother looked deep in thought
Peeking over the mug of tea.
Our white resin furniture
Now looking clunky and cheap
But state of the art at the time.
It looks as if there had been
Good weather by the state of the grass.
Why did mother look so angry?
Maybe Because she did not 
Want to have her photo taken!
Maybe I said, 'come on just one'
I can't remember now.
And to be honest I don't care,
Because when I look at this photo
all I can think of now
Is how I'd love to be 
Back in that time again.
I mourn the loss of 'then'.
Perhaps mother was thinking
Back to earlier days too,
Days when my dad was still alive?
She never said. There was just
This atmosphere of sadness,
Anger, and reluctance -
Of being in this new phase
Of her life without him.

More requiem that tea party!


© Griffonner 2026





Poetry by Griffonner The PoetBay support member heart!
Read 146 times
star mini Editors' choice
Written on 2026-04-13 at 11:27

Tags Nostalgia  Grief  Garden 

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Sameen The PoetBay support member heart!
A proustian snapshot. Good penning.
2026-05-04


Editorial Team The PoetBay support member heart!
Your poem has been chosen to be featured on the home page of PoetBay. Thank you for posting on our poetry website!
2026-04-20


Alan J Ripley The PoetBay support member heart!
It's strange to think you can travel,
Far out into space and looking back at earth.
You can see the past, yet we can already do that
Within ourselves, to find an inner piece.
2026-04-14


William Hughes The PoetBay support member heart!
The older I get the more 'thens' accumulate like like water against a dam. But when the dam feels like it has a breach, I remind myself that it wasn't all peaches and cream back then. Though I miss people, places and times of back then, I look for new people places and times in the here and now. Lovely, reminiscent verses, and it's important to remember the good times.
2026-04-13


one trick pony The PoetBay support member heart!
Eastern thought suggests that the past is dead, the future is yet to be born, there is only now.

Yet, so often we long for the past and have hope for the future. It's the now that we too find lacking.

Which seems to be what your poem is about—finding happiness wherever it may be, in this case you mourn the loss of "then", "then" holds the potential for happiness.

If only . . .
2026-04-13


arquious The PoetBay support member heart!
Reminds me that intent and attitude does influence how any teatime goes 🙏🏻🕊️
2026-04-13