That young man in the photograph
Of course it’s much more poignant now he’s dead.
Alive there was always hope… some promise.
Some light at the end of the tunnel to make things right.
But now the obituary, the eulogy, the excuses,
the anguish, the recriminations, the blame game,
the ‘if onlys’. None of that will bring him back
for another run at life.

So best get it sorted.
These are real people, real lives, real ambitions
we are dealing with… This is not a rehearsal.
This is not a project or a thesis in your sociology degree.
This is a young hopeful's life. You’ve badged it hope ‘less’.
Now it might just be a failure for you, a pause in your career,
but it’s a bereavement for his mum, his dad, his grans, his grandads
and most of all, I always think - for me!

I am looking down - now that I’m up here…
Well it’s too late for me - but please spend a bit more time
getting IN when you feel I’ve locked you OUT.
I was confused, abused, a user, a drug abuser who felt befuddled…
needed to be nurtured, encouraged...metaphorically cuddled!
Unless that EARLY MORNING TOKER can kick the skunk
and what often follows it down, then we will just keep going…
round and round and round.