The Alien

[heslopian]

I know how they feel about her
how they treat her with some vague fear
as we move among the salmon heads
and pizza plates talking endlessly
about college and work and memories
which don't involve mental illness

as I hold onto my sanity
with bloodied fingers
I fear I'll become my mother
doomed to inane distant chatter
as we gather at intervals
round my aunt's mock Tudor home
which she's spent a lifetime
stripping to suit her modern theme

I know the money for my shrink sessions
comes from my aunt and uncle but
they still regard me as a person
and not as an oddity who talks and talks
about taxi drivers and criminals
and who sits on the sofa in ill-fitting clothes
downing wine and canopies
like a rude guest someone's brought along

[addy]

This is a very intriguing glimpse of an orderly but deeply unsettled familial scene... about how mental illness, that odd sickness people still mistrust and fear, can extend as more of a social affliction rather than just a mental one. I love the little images and details that add an understated, simmering character to the piece (the salmon heads and pizza plates, just the offness of the renovated Tudor home) the words tempered but busting at the seams with an off-kilter, deeply unnameable discomfort; more a scar than a pain.

[Ris Yerg]

Very deep, thought provoking and interesting!
R.Y.

[billy]

I know how they feel about her
how they treat her with some vague fear
as we move among the salmon heads
and pizza plates talking endlessly
about college and work and memories
which don't involve mental illness

as I hold onto my sanity
with bloodied fingers
I fear I'll become my mother
doomed to inane distant chatter
as we gather at intervals
round my aunt's mock Tudor home
which she's spent a lifetime
stripping to suit her modern theme

I know the money for my shrink sessions
comes from my aunt and uncle but
they still regard me as a person
and not as an oddity who talks and talks
about taxi drivers and criminals
and who sits on the sofa in ill-fitting clothes
downing wine and canopies
like a rude guest someone's brought along

the interaction you have going on is pretty powerful jack
i'm not sure if the 1st verse is about the mother or the gran...going by the 2nd verse i think it's the mum.

there are so many lines to like here, as usual it's narrative. it has some good insights. the atmosphere of the poem is stunning, almost palpable.
excellent thanks for the read.

[heslopian]

All of the verses are about the mother. Thanks for the kind words and feedback Billy.

[billy]

then it works

you have a certain way of light a scene or
snippet of life up in such a way as to make it
feel real to the reader. that you do it originally makes it all the
more enjoyable.