- HubPages»
- Gender and Relationships»
- Marriage
Dance of a lifetime
They are older now
One step at a time
They dance without music
their breathing the only sound
She is liffed,
tossed,
turned,
caught and thrown
and caught again...
The relationship develops,
deteriorates
and recovers
among crying babies
and laughing children
they call them mum and dad.
They keep dancing
with their pillows
then lie
with their heads
on them
to make love.
More sinisterly,
later on,
they turn the pillowslips
into blindfolding hoods,
their battle ends
with a hug.
They dance without music
their breathing the only sound.
A feverish dance
of a relationship
that nears
the breaking point
but survives,
a dance of mutual
dependency,
trapped
in a rectangle of light
each elbowing
for a place
of their own
in well deserved
spotlight.
Falling apart
and coming together
everyday
in this endless
dance of a lifetime,
she is on all four,
skittering around
like some crushable insect,
she rolls,
lies on her back,
he runs to her,
she picks up a brass rod,
twirls it in a baton
slashes it
twistling through the air
turns it into a weapon.
He moves cautiously back,
picking his camera
from his pocket,
flash bulb
photographing her
repeatedly.
They dance without music
their breathing the only sound,
pouring water
over each other
and sinking
slowly
to the floor,
before he rises
in a panic,
shaking
and lifting up
her apparently lifeless body.
Blackout,
a few minutes
of darkness,
a rich
tantalizing brief moment
of his fear
on her lips.
She then stirs,
tiny fluttering
of her bare feet,
he stands up
and they dance again
with swiftness
and precise control
of their movement
body against the body
like a clockwork,
under her bare hands
she feels
his fearless physicality,
her eyes full
of dazzling
intense
energy
and yearning
for expressive plasticity.
Comments
I like the comparison of marriage to a dance. You capture the different stages and moods of life very well. Thanks for this beautiful piece.
I was married for 24 years before my wife passed away, and I can recognize the truth in your words here. It is a dance that only gets better if we are willing to keep getting up and dancing again. Thank you for the beautiful words.
- Author
Thank you my fellow hubbers, one step at a time may reveal something close and personal but there is something universal in our dancing whoever we meet, wherever we go....
Thank you for this. Interesting, as it was dancing that saw Arlene and I over hard times. Small wonder we never looked so good as when we were together.
- Author
thank you, my fellow hubber from San Francisco, dancing is very powerful art form that can close the gaps and smooth hard edges....if both are willing to do so...
Interesting how you used dancing related to the stages couples experience. It's worth it to stick it out! Lovely to read, Kathi
- Author
thanks, Kathi for stopping by, happy it was worthwhile:)
Realationships go through seasons as do the months of a year - Very interesting play on words with fantastic imagery that flows down the page allowing the reader to capture the essence of each of their season in life together - It is like a dance; with the steps being either in sync or a slip or two - what remains is the love -
- Author
Beautifully said, Denizee, love it...thank you for stopping by and happy you liked it, sometimes I feel that I am so lost in imagery that people loose track to follow me there...happy you manage to follow my creative thread all the way up to its end:)
A beautifully presented poem with such lovely photos. A unique way of the way you chose the combination in two people.
- Author
Yes, there are so many combination two close people may interact...endless combinations actually....thank you so much for your thorough comments, all the best my beautiful reader:)... B
Hi Beata,
Beautiful. So much can be expressed in dance that cannot be expressed in words.
Voted up and sharing
Take care :)
Brilliant! Love the way you've put a relationship parallel to dancing. The photos alone speaks for itself....lovely!
- Author
thank you, Sue, read your blurb about living in Toronto I am going to visit your beautiful city this July, can not wait:) Take care, dear Sue and all the best:)
Thank you CrisSp, happy you liked it:)
Lovely!
Hi Beata,
I am happy that you will be visiting Toronto. I know you will enjoy it.
Take care, dear Beata and all the best:)
- Author
thank you, girls, and all the best:) Of course I will, Sue, I look forward to it:)...B
I can say this is the best way you can describe love, relation the dance of love, Oh!! its just beautiful and heart lifting, plus the pictures by the side add to the beauty of poem. beautiful piece :)
- Author
thank you the endless sea, hope your endless inspiration with the words never ends:) B
Portraying the whole scene as a dance... good vision you have. The best thing that capture my eye and captivated....i stole glances again and again...what wonderful images you have sprayed around it!! Lovely lovely depiction!
- Author
Thank you my fellow hubber, happy that I get you inspired, so let us keep dancing that bittersweet dance of life....B
You words bring to mind a ballet telling the story of a couple's journey through life.
Thank you for the visit to my hubs. Pleasure reading yours. :)
- Author
Thank you for your beautiful comment, happy to have another great hubber friend:) B
What a touching hub! I just loved the way you depicted the couple's walk on earth side by side and the final fearless personalities they had become. thank you for such an inspiring piece of writing.
- Author
Happy you liked it litsabd, there are so many ways you can describe couples, two unique individuals trying to match their wants and needs at the end of each day...it is a neverending dance between yes or no or maybe in between:)
Dance/ marriage: I'd rather dance only now. Marriage, phew, what a mind-job! Lots of soul mates instead, please.
This was a very interesting read. Thank you. I enjoyed your comparison.
- Author
I enjoyed your answer too:) Life has is its own bitter and sweet taste so I have to write about both to keep balance....you have to keep balance even in dancing, you know....thank you for stopping by and looking forward to hear from you again:) ....B
A roller-coaster ride of intimate thoughts, and emotions of a two-in-one life, proudly calling attention to the successes and failures, that a relationship can experience at various stages during its demise and progress.An interesting verse.
Yours Sincerely,
Romeo's Quill
- Author
Thank you Romeo, so elloquently said my fellow hubber, it looks like you have some experience in long relationships too:) All the best and looking forward to hear from you again:) B
you are a writer. I love the way you using words to express the urgue of the moment. woow! great poem
- Author
Thank you so much, happy Mike, it is so rewarding to know that people take time to praise you:) Haven't written anything for a while so maybe it is the time...THANK YOU AGAIN..B
31