A Spinster Look

A cold, hard, critical look -
then calculating my feelings
and in what exact quantity
to reveal them.

Certain eyes are human
and cold,
even dead
like cut glass.

The woman stays housebound
with duty
and the expectation
of tradition
being fulfilled.
The man is all but an act
of grace,
a gift,
a favour
huge
like a plastic bag
to stuff your love in.

Spinsters must have figured
this out early on.
Single girls
need to follow suit,

looking ahead towards
cold, hard winters
of peace and solitude.

November, 2013