(This poem is the work of a very dear friend of mine, Lila Colloton, who, at the age of 80, is still an active poet and a journalist for an area newspaper.  Her poems have been published in several different venues, including her book Rhyme, Rhythm, and Reason. What makes this particular poem especially delightful, in my opinion, is that she wrote it at the tender age of 16.)

AN OLD MAID

by Lila Colloton

Being an old maid would be fun I guess:
No diapers to wash or children to dress;
You may go shopping whenever you can;
Don’t have to sit home and wait for your man.
Yes, being an old maid would be fun I suppose:
Just one person’s dishes and your very own clothes.

But just stop to think before you continue:
Don’t you feel sort of funny within you?
Kind of an empty feeling I bet.
Just suppose Mom and Dad hadn’t met.
Where would you be?
Nobody knows:
Probably just part of the breeze that blows.

So stop debating before it’s too late;
When he calls up, don’t break that date!

© 1932 Lila Colloton