Look Me In The Eyes Poem by Ruth Walters

He told me things would get better,
swore he'd make life okay,
pledged to toss out his errant ways
and stay home from the pub for a change,
but when bills flew through the letterbox
and the county courts appeared,
that old despairing feeling
put icicles in my tears.
I said ‘look me in the eyes, my love',
don't grin, you sweaty, crazy!
Tell me you'll get a bloody job,
or I'm gonna to leave you, baby!
He took me to the window
and showed me a winter sky,
snow was deep upon the mud,
where we, silly peasants would slide.
Then he held me close and whispered,
it'll be alright, sweetheart,
but not once did he show me
a payslip,
and his breath still smelt of the glug.
I said, I've no money for heating,
and I've no money for food,
and there's no money to fix the damp
as I don't get any from you.
You're a waster, you're a dreamer,
a lazy, dirty lout
and even though you're handsome,
I'm gonna throw you out.
So, he walked out through the front door
and I hurried round the back,
as the key was in the outside loo,
I was damned if I'd have him back,
but he looked me in the eyes,
and begged me to open the door,
screaming, it's bloody awful cold out here,
you're a bitch, you dirty, whore!
Then I began to giggle, he began to laugh,
and the neighbours across the road
we're shouting, "he ain't worth it luv"
The sky produced some thunder
and the rain came pouring down
but we danced and we sang and canoodled,
me still in my dressing gown.