Warning (with a twist)

My take on Warning by Jenny Joseph

I am a young woman and I shall wear purple

With red headphones which don’t go, and don’t suit me.

And I shall spend my money on vinyls and sillybands

And platform heels, and say we’ve no money for butter.

I shall sit down on the pavement and draw

And gobble up samples from visiting colleges and sit in shopping carts

And run my fingers along the fences

And continue the joy of my childhood.

I shall go out in my gumboots and nightdress in the rain

And pick the flowers in the park

And learn to play believe.

You can wear terrible pants and cut your hair

And eat three pounds of sausages at a go

Or only bread and cheese for a week

And hoard mugs and pencils and memories and trinkets in boxes.

But now we must have clothes that keep us dry

And pay our rent and decide on lifelong jobs

And set a good example for the children.

We must have friends to dinner and read the papers.

But maybe they ought to practise a little now?

So people who meet adulthood are not too shocked and surprised

When suddenly we are children again and wear purple.

CCHIO

P.S. Childhood does not have to end, adulthood merely expands it :)

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Warning - Jenny Joseph

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cACbzanitg&ab_channel=BloodaxeBooks

When I am an old woman I shall wear purple

With a red hat which doesn’t go, and doesn’t suit me.

And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves

And satin sandals, and say we’ve no money for butter.

I shall sit down on the pavement when I’m tired

And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells

And run my stick along the public railings

And make up for the sobriety of my youth.

I shall go out in my slippers in the rain

And pick the flowers in other people’s gardens

And learn to spit.

You can wear terrible shirts and grow more fat

And eat three pounds of sausages at a go

Or only bread and pickle for a week

And hoard pens and pencils and beermats and things in boxes.

But now we must have clothes that keep us dry

And pay our rent and not swear in the street

And set a good example for the children.

We must have friends to dinner and read the papers.

But maybe I ought to practise a little now?

So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised

When suddenly I am old, and start to wear purple.