Category: Love

He came from nowhere
and went back there,
wasn’t around in my first year, or third
only the second.
Would sometimes sing out loud, in the lab – surprisingly well –
gave an especially good rendition of My Eyes Adored You
so good, not even the po-faced issued a ban –
the lemons,
the ones born without a Christian name
always Mr or Dr or Professor.

Life after university …
always warm and expansive at 19.
Steve and the future :
thought he might develop a contraceptive gateau
then,
“people could eat their cake and have it too.”
And, as a plan B – politics,
stood in local and community elections
as Rusty Lead-Head, representing the corrugated iron party.

Springtime exams – Autumn enrolment,
he was there …… and then he wasn’t.
He never became tedious, or blowhard
or attention seeking
or down-shelfed to acknowledgement only –
he just disappeared.
Memory often pulls out his image,
polishes the recollection ……. and smiles.

I could have told the truth
but didn’t
sometimes fact seems more unlikely than fiction
or more contrived,
more straining of credibility.

My loved one had an accident,
life threatening
brought back from the dead – literally
thank God for vigilance, helicopters
and her brother-in-law.

The rates invoice from the City Council
remained unnoticed and unpaid
by more than a week
when attention remembered – 10% penalty.
Late, I said to the woman to counter
no reason, I knew to … simply forgot …
poor attention,
poor follow-up.

She asked if I had a cheque-book
affirmative
“ if you write one with the due date
I started … then forgot to complete processing.”

I had been seeing her eight or nine years, at least,
seen her go from packer
to checkout operator
to supervisor
to acting charge.
Supermarket staff, high school here : university gone,
but she had stayed.

Always….. woebegone
flat hair, hunched shoulders, dragged feet
eyes away and down
glumly rectifying prices, approving alcohol, checking refunds.
Still there was a devout honesty,
unfailingly upheld :
No counterfeit cheer
no approximation of smile
no insincere enquiry.
Nothing reached her eyes.

Afterwards,
I could never quite remember why I had gone that way
and what encircled attention.
Perhaps it was the light
lace sunshine in riverside trees
and shining from the eyes of a mother
playing with her child. She looked so different.