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