Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Pantoum: The Petty Slight


The Petty Slight

It actually was a petty slight.
He started it!
I returned it with a bite.
I didn’t mean to!


He started it!
He slapped me in my line of sight.
He didn’t mean to!
I bawled so loud that he took fright.


He tried to fix my line of sight.
We saw how petty we had been.
He’d taken such a dreadful fright.
I wished I hadn’t bitten him.


We laughed at how petty we’d been.
He promised he would slap no more.
I said I would not bite again.
We walked away with peace restored.


--Miriam Parrish and Madeline Smith



2 comments:

Anonymous said...

As unbiased observers, we think our granddaughter ought to earn a prize. President, and Member Emeritus, Hokey Pokey Club

Alice C. Linsley said...

I look forward to reading more poems by Madeline and Miriam, both very talented young writers.