It was lovely to have this poem published on the Dagda Publishing website (fairly) recently,
http://dagdapublishing.com/2012/12/19/childhood-sweetheart-oh-how-you-shine-in-this-city-of-mine/
since I greatly enjoyed writing this poem. It is a cento (well, loosely), which means that every line comes from a different poet’s poem, and each poem came from Concrete Jungles a poetry anthology about cities which was published by Dagda Publishing last year. Writing a cento is rather like completing a crossword puzzle. Which lines should I pick? How could I make any sense out of them? And then rainy, romantic thoughts entered my head, and I found all the lines I needed. The line ‘Alive and abuzz’ is my own, which comes from my poem ‘Beautiful Girl on the King’s Road, London’. It’s getting rather complicated, all this… but I had great fun writing it. And I hope it evokes the rainy, romantic aspect that cities can take on…
Childhood sweetheart, oh, how you shine in this city of mine…
Suited, booted My, how you’ve grown. A smile plays across my lips. The weather doesn’t look too good — You grab my hand, We pass the football ground, over the railway bridge; Alive and abuzz. Lycraed hornets dash and dart, Cameras abound; look up on the corner and down the street; Houses made of brick and rust; brollies and Jameses everywhere. Some people see no character here. I am reassured by the rumbling thunder that shakes my feet, The anonymity of it all. Suited, booted My, how you’ve grown. A smile plays across my lips. © Marija Smits 2012