Poem - Anticlimax

It all begins with ...

"Come on! We're going to be late!"
I know that call only too well
So I slip on my shoes and rush out the front gate.

I watch our car swallow up the road and,
Of course, it is raining.
Slithering, sliding, like a snake on roller blades,
I make my way gracefully to the front door.
Everyone has already arrived,

Eating what looks like a canapé, but I couldn't be sure.
All of these people seem to know me by name,
I have no idea how, but I play along with their game,
They ask, "How's school?"
I reply, "Fine thank you" and quickly move on.
Others state, "What long hair you have!"
What to say to that? I just smile and whisper to mum, "Who is she?"

Making small talk to lighten the mood,
"So ... how are your children?"
Or maybe not, one of them just failed their degree at Uni,
"Are you enjoying the food?"
Yes, better, I can surely say that without any awkward silences,

No.
Wrong again, she's allergic to every food under the sun,
Oh well, I tried, I'll leave the chit chat to the grown-ups.

And this is where it ends, at home, peace and quiet. On an anticlimax.