Old, Young, Red, White, by Lorelei Bacht

Beach with Two Seated Women, by Edvard Munch (Norway) c. 1903

Old, Young, Red, White. 

1. 
Our mother, our sister, sat by the sea. 
First it was you, then it was me. 
Sons, like a string of pearls,
Devoured by the waves. 
 
2. 
My mother now departed
Sits with me by the shore. 
She cannot breathe,
But whispers me stories 
Of the great unknown. 
 
3. 
As he descends into the deep,
The mariner imagines: his mother, 
His wife, back on the shore, sitting. 
How long will she wait, before
Remarrying - the butcher's son. 
 
4. 
The day decays into twilight. 
Red tint of my despair
In the sky, on my dress: 
He will never come back. 
 
5. 
How the sea witnesses 
The passing of my years: 
Me, a red-hearted youth, 
Willing to compromise 
Myself with men. 
Me, twenty years later, 
Having entered the whiteness 
Of life already spent. 
 
6. 
Old, young, red, white,
Days of glory, days of grief - 
The sea remains unchanged.
​
Lorelei Bacht
  
Lorelei Bacht is a European writer living in Asia with her family. When she is not carrying little children around or trying to develop their appreciation for modern art, she can be found in the garden, befriending orb weavers and millipedes. She once edited and published poetry, under a different name. Her current work can be found and/or is forthcoming in Open Door Poetry Magazine, Visitant, The Wondrous Real and Quail Bell. She can also be found on Instagram: @lorelei.bacht.writer