a bag and a box and an old rag doll
there may be other things but we can't remember
a pair of knickers and a pair of tights
her blue swimming costume
her papers in the box
and her old grey cardigan
the rag doll blind and legless...
when i was little
and my Nana and my Dad weren't talking
we would visit her in semi-secret
Mum would drop us off, my sister and i
in her funny smelling flat with its endless nicknacks
a difficult woman - i never understood
what the difficulty was
we would sit for a while
on her awkward chairs
be quizzed about school
and how well were we doing?
then off to the Wimpy bar
for burgers and chips
and stories about the old Jewish East End
which i didn't understand at the time
and forgot
she is dead now
but i still eat in Wimpy bars...
saw her again last night
first time since
a swift transaction
picking up stuff she'd left at my place
swimming costume
pair of knickers
pair of tights
her old rag doll
conditioner and moisturising cream
a box of vital documents
archive things, her work
her memoir of the dangerous affair
i saved her from, oh, years ago
her statements and certificates
of how much higher born than me she is
two minutes in and out if that
was all it took to clear her things
from my place.
"can i have a hug?" she asked
and weak as water Muggins did
as Muggins was requested to.
Never Going To Talk To Her Again by Wayne Myers