This poem is a prompt from the lovely Jill Badonsky, my creativity coach teacher. http://www.themuseisin.com/
She asked that we pick an event in our lives and let it find it’s importance in a prose, poetic, sorta way.
This was a very significant event in my life. It lead to the first most embarrassing experience of my life. I have had a few…
This was fun to write this morning. It just sorta fell outta me. I hope you enjoy it.
CHEERLEADER AND THE SNAKE
On more Rah Rah and a sky high cheerleader jump
To Earth was my skirt round my feet in a slump
White cotton girls slip and white round collar blouse
Imprisoned am I in the brown plaid serpent of the gym house
300 hundred, a thousand, a million eyes all on me
Standing there in silence with my skirt past my knees
The sixth grade basket ball game came to a screeching halt
For me in slow motion trying to figure how to get out
Of standing in the center of this gym floor all alone
With a million, gaggilion people staring at my little girl bones
The silence was deafening, my horror was bold
When the crowd in the bleacher stood with their cheers in a loud roll
All over my body the roar trembled from head to feet
The cheering and laughing closed in to my narrowing defeat
I shivered and quivered and grabbed at that snake
Quietly laying round my feet so damn sedate
It hissed and shimmied and gave in with relent
Only to meet at my knees as I shuffled and went
Past the crowd cross that shiny miles of gym floor
Desperate to get to that far away exit door
The family, the friends the entire school had come
To witness the joy of this small town’s homecoming fun
And me with my Rah and cheer a snake at my feet
Embarrassed beyond whether the boys won or got beat
Trembling beyond anything I had ever known
Huddled by the door with the millions and feeling alone
All eyes were on me now what was I at last to do
They’d all stopped their cheering afraid for my boo hoo
From somewhere deep inside me I certainly don’t know
A riotous laughter was bubbling and ready to show
Before all these people, before I had any clue
Out of my mouth loud laughter it flew
A little hysteria, maybe a little ingenue
It was funny, ridiculous, I had no boo hoo
The crowd joined me in laughter and wowed me sublime
The sixth grade boys wouldn’t forgive me for taking their time
Selfish boys they do that cause they must
I was the center of the that homecoming fuss
My cheerleading ways they ended that day
It wasn’t the path for my bohemian way
Girls like me didn’t take to the cheerleading cheer
My joy was exulted in my journey for there to here
Many a Rah, a cheer, and a hoot tootie toot toot
I’m friends with that serpent that laid my skirt to my boots
Priceless, wonderful and timeless, darlin’. More stories, please of how the Jeanne we now know came to be.
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