Valentine

 

The least romantic day of the year has passed on

Today no guilty flowers, dutiful cards, unwanted chocolates

Spontaneity will be back on the menu

Expressions of love that sing solo

 

That shabby prince steps back into the cog of days

Shamelessly counting his takings,

ignoring the cynicism and unwanted attention,

 

Yes, spontaneity is back on the streets

Scratching, purring, roaring

Bumbling, stumbling, gushing

Declaring, swearing, promising

Risking it all again

 

Sharp

 

so sharp not felt

painless entry fools me again

medication forced

a ball-bearing brooding under skin

so slowly seeping into me

 

vein valve stretched

a pool accumulates

pulling veins and valves further

blood slowed to thick

pressure building ‘til

 

pain, like reminders after years of drunk

hijacks, cripples

the thought of it receding

just enough to bear

 

watch the tip enter silently again

efficiently sharp

navel clockface, hours marked

before pills and tests and decisions

 

 

New Name

 

If I wanted to give myself a new name

a name with no prior connotations

No acquaintances, nor celebrities, nor notable namesakes

whether awful or saintly, couldn’t be considered,

If I wanted to give myself a new name I would,

but every name is known, somewhere.

 

I chose instead to make up a new name,

untainted by association,

but even those attempts had connotations

of origin, of gender, of decisions of pronunciation.

 

I tried long combinations of syllables,

and single syllables,

but every sound has been made before.

I tried reducing to just the letters of the alphabet,

but Gee sounded American, Elle was French, 

Aye was Scottish, and being called Why would need explaining.

 

So I’m back where I started,

with the name my parents gave me,

before they knew who I was,

only an idea, an association, of who they hoped I would be.

 

Seems it’s up to me

to change the connotations of my moniker,

overcome the compromises committed by other namesakes,

and give this name

something to live up to.

 

Ten things found in a Time Traveller’s Backpack

 Inspired by Ten Things Found in a shipwrecked sailor’s Pocket by Ian MacMillan.

 

  1.  One Polaroid of Henry VIII being kissed passionately, the lady is not wearing a crown

  2.  Football scores torn from a newspaper dated 6^th May 1981

  3.  A wanted poster of himself in a cowboy hat

  4.  A life insurance policy renewal reminder letter

  5.  A dvd box marked Top Secret containing a disc of Back To The Future

  6.  A Post-It that says ‘Remember to drop off at publishers ! ! ‘ – stuck to

  7.  A small note book, handwritten in code, except ‘JFK, the truth, OMG’

  8.  An ornate key wrapped in a red ribbon, a hint of perfume

  9.  A black box, one red light blinking, labelled Property of Intergalactic Space Force

  10.  A receipt from the Titanic Lounge Bar – whisky no ice