The Death of An Ex

The Death of an Ex

John Pearson died the other day in China.
Hearing of her ex-'s death, Mrs. Atkins knew
That no one in her present family must know -
Her love for John was as real,
As her marriage to Atkins is.

So, life has to go on -
In the Atkins household, she must look normal:
Little Judy goes for the Karate try-outs today,
Tony sits for his Board Exams day after tomorrow,
Maria and Lamia are away on a Science tour,
Mrs. Atkins has to hide her feelings,
And smile and encourage her children
In their real-life challenges;

Mrs. Atkins never learned to act, or
Take part in drama;
She has never modelled,
And has always frowned at show-business;
But now, she is the main actor
In a real-life drama -
She must maintain a stoic stance,
And talk chirpily to her daughters when they call
from wherever they are in the wilderness.

She must maintain decorum, and even laugh
When Judy shows her the new karate moves;
Supervise Tony's studies, and serve him
His meals, hot milk and almonds on time;
She must attend to her routine work and home tasks
As usual.

In the privacy of her room, of course,
She may cry sensibly, but silently,
And, if the mascara should run off or
The lipstick get smudged,
She must reapply all these,
And face her children with a smile.
Forever, she must hide her love for John,
Lest Atkins should find out!

Her finale is yet to come:
She must remain the perfect Wife and Mother.

© Dr. Taher Kagalwala, 2008.

Author's Note: I had first posted this poem as "The Death of John Pearson" in 2004. I have read this poem in poetry meets more than once, and it was only now that someone pointed out some errors in the basic premise of the poem. I have therefore re-written it. Kindly let me know your genuine feedback and oblige!