Pat Jones

25a Schumann Street

by Judith Graham

We moved into the flat ten years ago
With nothing but a saucepan and a bed.
Within a day a rug began to grow
Before the week was out it swiftly spread.
The kitchen sprouted cupboards blue and white
Which filled themselves with plates and spoons and pots.
The living room grew sofas overnight
The bathroom ferns, the curtains polka dots.
Then tables budded chairs with cushioned springs
And knick-knacks flowered yearly on the shelves.
Amidst this choking clamour full of things,
No wonder that we slowly lost ourselves.
     And when I chose at last to break away
     The movers cleared the lot in half a day.

Judith Graham grew up in Western Australia. Sonnets have been an abiding pleasure for many years. Judith now lives and works in central London.