Caller Herring
There is a painting I once saw.
A girl sitting under a tree.
A basket of herrings by her side.
Her dreamy eyes staring into the distance.
The art critic commented on her shoes.
They were good shoes he said.
And he wondered why she stared so longingly into the distance
with those shoes on.
And I could never decide
what sort of shoes you should have
to stare longingly into the distance in.
And whether there are any rules about that.
The painting is called Caller Herring.
So we know the girl was a fishwife.
She went from door to door to sell herrings.
In the meantime, she could be whoever she liked,
a princess, or a pirate, or a fish.
She could grow gills or a pair of wings.
And I wonder if the art critic would agree,
but I think those herrings are a decoy.
For no one must know that she is not a fishwife,
but someone different all together,
a pirate or a princess or a fish.
Someone with gills or a pair of wings,
ready to take off any moment now.
Fantastic!
ReplyDelete