Elephant in the Room
A mock‑operatic pantoum in which a couple argue with great seriousness while ignoring the obvious.
Pardon? What did you say? I didn’t hear.
I am sure you are going deaf.
There is nothing wrong with my hearing, dear.
I’d check it out if I were you.
I am sure you are going deaf.
There is a pink elephant in the room.
I’d check it out if I were you.
I can’t find the dustpan or broom.
There is a pink elephant in the room.
I trust you are still taking your pills.
I can’t find the dustpan or broom.
They’re in the cupboard behind the soap sud refills.
I trust you are still taking your pills.
You never listen to a word I say.
They’re in the cupboard behind the soap sud refills.
Why is there a pink elephant in the room?
You never listen to a word I say.
There is nothing wrong with my hearing, dear.
Why is there a pink elephant in the room?
Pardon? What did you say? I didn’t hear.
—Lesley Scoble, September 2026
Audio – Elephant in the Room 🎵
I wrote Elephant in the Room in response to Poet-of-the-Week Reena Saxena’s excellent prompt for the W3 Poetry Prompt #228. You can read her full pantoum guidelines below.
Reena’s Prompt: Pantoum
This week, I invite you to explore the music of repetition by writing a pantoum on any theme or subject.
A pantoum unfolds in four-line stanzas, with each stanza carrying two lines into the next:
- The second line becomes the first line of the next stanza.
- The fourth line becomes the third line of the next stanza.
- Add new lines in the second and fourth positions, letting the repeated lines gather fresh meaning in their new surroundings.
Continue for as many stanzas as you like. To bring the poem full circle, the final stanza traditionally uses the opening stanza’s third line as its second line, and the poem’s opening line as its closing line.
For inspiration, read my pantoum, “Pockets of Happiness”. Explore this guide to writing a pantoum, and try this handy pantoum-writing tool to keep your repeating lines in place.
Let your lines return—and see what new meanings they gather along the way!
Thank you, Reena, for your inspiration.
Thank you, David, for your encouragement and support.
And thank you, the reader, for stopping by.
I wish to express my sympathy in memory of all who suffered in the 9/11 Twin Towers attack.
LesleyScoble.com 
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