Cast Off

Going through my old work there was clearly I time that I was disenchanted with life and love.  I wondered whether to share this, but all emotions have a place in life and the difficult ones are often only too real.

This one was written for a friend who'd been cheated on.  I like the feisty take on it, the way it turns around the victim narrative.

Yes you are younger than me
But this is not about you
This is about something that started years ago
between him and me
You are not the reason or even the catalyst
You were simply there at the right time
for both of us
There to pick up the pieces from our disaster
There to scoop the crumbs from my plate
Oh I may look over the hill to you
A has been who is past the first flush of youth
maybe even the second
But I have had the best years
the years when he could keep up
The years when he wasn’t secretly exhausted
I may have had the lean years
but his body was lean then too
And his mind wasn't jaded
You may have the wealthy years
the corporate years
the flabby years
You may be shown off at dinners and dances and parties
as the new jewel in his crown
the sparkle in his mind’s eye
Whilst I may be remembered as the faded faux pearl  
The diamond that turned out to be fake
But I have been you
I have had my time
and given that time again I would not be you now
So take care of my cast off
Because I have had the best of him


Deb Hawken
1990s