The Scarlet Woman Revised

I remember the first time I saw her The scarlet woman She was nothing like I had heard She looked beautiful and cold And wore her name with pride I don’t know what I expected Maybe I thought she would cower Shudder at the glares people gave Because4 I knew the cruelty of society For my mother was at its center Her words were like horse whips Thin and yet causing much pain And she did not spare the scarlet woman She called her a stubborn wench A disgrace to all that is proper Maybe that’s why I need to see her At first it was out of spite But her steady eyes held my interest I wanted to meet this woman of great courage And I did I needed to find courage like she had And I was so sure that I needed her But now I realize how much we needed each other Maybe she more than me I remember she stared at me incredulously As I stuttered trying to explain why I hid in the bushes Then she smiled We became friends, true friends For she was lonely and I was lonely And together we sparked interesting conversations But she said it must be a secret For she would not allow by chances to be ruined she said In time I learnt to disagree with her Show my objections on certain opinions But I never disagreed with her on that Maybe I was a coward, Maybe I wanted it to last forever For a while she was invincible The bravest person I ever met And then she died For the first time I saw how the years had dealt with her She looked frail, cold and beautiful And as I looked over the grave I made for her I squeezed my brother’s hand for support For in that moment I felt truly alone And I wondered how I would survive But I did, I survived I had children and grand children And I thought of her less But these days I think of her often Maybe its because im near death So I have nothing to lose So let me tell a tale Of sweet, brave and stubborn ANNA The scarlet woman