Roberta Writes – d’Verse: Poetry in Liminal Spaces and Thursday Doors: Airplanes #d’Verse #Thursdaydoors

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d’Verse prompt

Our challenge? Using one of the three types of liminal spaces listed above, let’s give poetic voice to what “doors” it may open to us. You can employ the liminal space as the setting and/or the subject. Write about it as an observer or participant, of how it may prepare, ground, provoke, intrigue you, unexpectedly or not, for better or worse. You may want to use an image (like those above) for inspiration. I just want you to have fun exploring the idea of a liminal space and seeing what you can come up with. To find out more about the challenge, go here: https://dversepoets.com/2024/06/11/poetry-in-liminal-spaces/

Thank you to Dora for the challenge. You can read Dora’s poem here: https://pilgrimdreams.com/2024/06/11/holy-saturday/

The Family on the Plane

Ping! The seatbelt light goes off. I unclip mine and stretch.

I’m lucky, I have three seats all to myself. The whole row.

My chaise longue is soon created. I use all the pillows and blankets.

The plane bounces. There’s a lot of turbulence, but I go with the flow.

Across the aisle is a family of five. A baby and two small children.

What luck! They have two rows to themselves. Dad rearranges everyone.

Children interest me. I watch surreptitiously as mom settles the baby

into a seat nest. I’m happy for the parents. Travelling with children isn’t fun.

Mom fascinates me. She is so calm, her movements slow and measured.

She’s nothing like me. I was a ball of anxiety when my boys were small.

It’s probably why they were so much trouble. The word that comes to mind,

as I watch the mom, is bovine. It certainly works for her; the baby doesn’t bawl.

Lunch is served. I tuck into mine hungrily. The two young children waste theirs.

Afterwards, everyone lies down. Amazing, how the children all sleep so peacefully.

Unfortunately, two hours later, the boy and girl wake up cross. Grumpy little bears.

Mom takes her daughter to the toilet, leaving dad holding the baby. Her son watches.

As soon as she’s out of sight, he starts to wail. “Mommy! Mommy!” With a seat in between

Dad is stuck. I lean towards the child, smiling. “Go to Daddy,” I encourage him, pointing

at the father. The boy stops howling, gazes at me, then shuffles across. A sweet scene.

“Thank you,” says Dad. I smile and settle down comfortably. Time for a spot of reading.

Thursday Doors

My Thursday Doors post tied in beautifully with the d’Verse prompt this week. You can join in Thursday Doors here: https://nofacilities.com/2024/06/13/csc-model-trains/

Picture caption: Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam – window view from my seat on the plane. Lots of vehicles with lots of doors. This was at 10am in the morning.
Picture caption: Me on my chaise longue on the plane
Picture caption: Our room at the Sheraton Hotel at Schiphol Airport. The doors are to the cupboard.
Picture caption: The bathroom in the hotel room. I missed my bath at home.
Picture caption: Lobby of the Sheraton Hotel. A few doors leading off to staff only places.
Picture caption: a strawberry daiquiri – nothing like the daiquiris I have at home which contain strawberries and ice.

Published by robertawrites235681907

I am a writer of young adult fiction and poetry

Published

80 thoughts on “Roberta Writes – d’Verse: Poetry in Liminal Spaces and Thursday Doors: Airplanes #d’Verse #Thursdaydoors”

  1. I love your story/poem. I have more than once had to help settle down a child on a flight. I didn’t travel with my children when they were small. Marcelle was 8 when we went to the UK with her. Great doors. I love Schiphol Airport.

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    1. Hi Darlene, I travelled with my babies and my boys as small kids. I also end up helping desperate moms on every flight. They often don’t know about basis things like change in air pressure causing ear pain. Children must suck during take offs and landings.

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  2. I must say you look as snug as one can be traveling across continents, Robbie! Loved the pix — very liminal space-ish! — and of course the poem. What a nice sense of space, confinement, and slice-of-life drama you give us as an observer and then a facilitator of this passage between places! Charming. I wish I could have been a “bovine” mother during air travel with my kids. Hats off to her, and to you for coming to a harried father’s rescue! 🙂

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    1. Hi Dora, I am lucky, small children always like me. I was the supervisor at my local Sunday School for years and have always looked after a lot of small children. It was a great travel event – a first for me as usually the flights are dreadful.

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    1. HI Wayne, yes, my daiquiri’s are much better. I wouldn’t order another especially at the huge price. It’s fun to try new things though. I know that term because chaise longue feature in a lot of older artworks.

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  9. That’s sure a nice story, Robbie, and wonderful that you were able to be of some help to the family. The pictures are great, too. It must have been a nice stay for you in Amsterdam.

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  12. A plane is a world unto itself–definitely liminal. Kudos to you for helping Dad out with his cranky boy. As you said, traveling with young children is no fun. But how lucky to not be packed in like sardines, as every flight I’ve ever taken has been. (K)

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    1. Haha, travel to a place no one wants to go – like SA the day before an election – and the flight will be half empty. It was great good luck because me flight to Amsterdam was packed and awfully uncomfortable. fascinating people to talk to, of course. I like that about flying – I always find interesting people to chat to. I am very good with small children (and animals). They love me. I think they know I love them.

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  13. Great photos and I liked your poem/story. Air travel is never fun, but it seems like you got lucky. IYou told the story very well. I followed your pictures and videos of your trip. You packed a lot into a short time.

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  14. I’m very impressed by how easily you were able to calm the wailing child. The lounge does look very comfy. I can’t remember the last time I was on a plane that wasn’t completely full.

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  16. Lovely story with great photos. To my eternal shame I confess to having never tasted nor seen in the flesh, as it were, a strawberry daiquiri.

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  19. I love your little story, Robbie, especially as it turned out to be so personal. I don’t think I’ve ever flown on a plane and had all three seats to myself. Cool idea to turn it into a chaise lounge. 🙂 Fabulous hotel room and lots of fun doors!

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  20. Traveling with kids isn’t easy, Robbie. I’m glad you were patient and able to help. A lovely poem that captures air travel. And great photos of your hotel too. Thanks for sharing your adventures.

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  23. the plane scene is delightful Robbie ; I enjoyed the little details, the photos too: especially that drink, almost as good probably as a beer in a Peroni glass 🙂

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  25. I always feel bad for kids in cramped spaces, and, for a kid, almost any place with walls is a cramped space. Actually, I feel bad for grown-ups in cramped spaces too. I do not feel bad for that pansy, however — that is one happy little flower!

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