Milsom Street, Bath UK by Kay Mercer

Walking down Milsom Street

A poem by Elena Poletti

Walking down Milsom Street,

my mind teems with memories

of other days, other companions:

Penny, on her way to the Roman Bath,

Anne Elliott, quietly at my side,

tranquil and resigned, until

her Captain is there---and all is changed.

I step out with Sara,

wide-eyed with wonder and expectation,

both of us away from home

but never, I think, as naïve

as little Catherine Morland.

Torn between Thorpes and Tilneys,

she patters along, quite unaccompanied.

Anna and I pass by, sturdily shod,

on our way from Sally Lunn’s to the Pump Room,

Not in the least taken up

with new arrivals, a new bonnet or gloves.

Other figures fade in and out

each in her own way part of the parade,

while I reflect on freedom, change, and shoes.

Bath, June 2018