Sheila Charles RE-ARRANGING THINGS
Whenever one re-arranges furniture,
How long does it take one’s brain?
To register the new arrangement?
Could somebody please explain?
A family friend moved a large chair,
Blocking the way into my front room.
(She probably thought it wouldn’t bother me
But I wish she wouldn’t assume!)
I was at fault for saying nothing
But inwardly, I would fume.
As soon as she went home,
I immediately dragged that chair back
To its original position.
Then I hit the sack!
The thing is, I’d got used to
Going too the lounge, the long way round –
Through the kitchen, then through the glass doors.
Now you won’t believe what I found!
That though it’s five months since I changed it back,
My brain still thinks that the chair
Is still behind the lounge door
So it’s an ongoing nightmare!
I NEEDN’T go the long way round.
I can get to the lounge from the hall,
Which is preferable when any visitors
Unexpectedly come to call.
Last month I re-arranged kitchen cupboards
So that I could more easily reach
Everything from dishes to food
To light bulbs, tool box, bleach.
But my BRAIN still hasn’t caught up.
So I fling open the cupboard. Oh. No.
Where I used to keep my dishes,
There are my tins all lined up in a row!
It is really disconcerting so
I think I may even prefer,
To re-arrange everything again,
AND PUT ALL THE THINGS BACK WHERE THEY WERE!
illustration by ume-nori
