all He wants to do
She knows anyway
is to
race his ‘sister’ off to bed at the
earliest opportunity
: however!
the Old One (that wifed four husbands al
ready) keeps both eyes open
& foils the Young Man’s every
move. while
everything seems just right for It (
branches sway in the midsummer
breeze / the tall grasses / the paths
& bushes) the hitch is
the Old One’s faithful servants &
her own eternal vigilance.
the Law of the Land is quite fiendish
: that the New Parson wed
the Old Parson’s widow! &
rumours in the village /
black magic at the hand of Dame
Margaret / take everybody in.
She poor dear herself
a Victim
of the Traditions. it was only her
devotion to the first husband
allowed her to outlive the next
three. amid
the change of seasons
they are reconciled / a kind of
second youthfulness before
the Old One’s death.
