We're on a bomb site
behind the tabernacle
looking for some
ammunition for
my catapult
which I carry
in the back pocket
of my jeans
Fay is looking
amongst the debris
of old bombed
out houses
or just area
left where
houses stood
it's a sunny day
holiday time
no school
-makes me happier-
is this one too big?
she asks
I look over
no that's a good one
I say
she brings it over
to where I stand
she holds it
between her
thin finger and thumb
and she drops it
into my palm
I weigh it up
and down then
drop it into
my pouch
-a knotted handkerchief-
she looks at me
her blue eyes
searching me
her fair hair
brought behind
her head in
a ponytail
have you ever
thought about self?
I look at her
self?
I say
what do you mean?
the I of us
what we call me
I look nonplus
and look down
for more small stones
a nun at school
said the I
in Christianity means
the I crossed out
in the form
of a cross
in other words
our self is not
more important
than that I or self
of another
and as a Christian
we should put
the self
of another first
I find a small stone
and pick it up
and finger it
so the cross is
supposed to show
self crossed out?
I say uncertainly
she looks at the stone
I'm holding
yes that's what
she was saying
self denial I think
is what she meant
Fay says
scratching her head
this nun at school
does she ever
tell jokes?
Fay frowns
no not as far
as I've heard
well I could
tell you one
O'Brien told me
but it's not for girls
to hear
not girls
as good as you
I say
Daddy says jokes
are sinful to say
and to hear Fay says
when I innocently
told him one
the other year
a girl at school told me
he spanked me
and said never
to hear or say jokes
ever again
what was the joke?
I ask
shouldn't say
she says
there's only you
and me here
no one will know
if you tell me
except God
and I guess He's
heard it before
I say
she looks at me
her blue eyes
staring
ok but don't
tell Daddy
I told you
she says
I promise not to tell
your old man
I say
well a man took his wife
to the cinema
and as they waited
in the queue
a man in front of them
passed wind
and the husband
said to the man
how dare you
pass wind
in front of my wife
and the man said
sorry I didn't know
it was her turn
I laugh and so does she
and I like how
her eyes sparkle
when she laughs
and her face lights up
like a summer day
then she's looks
at her hands
that was good
I say
but it's sinful
she says
but the brightness
in her face and eyes
didn't go away.
Jun 17, 2015
Jun 17, 2015 at 3:01 AM UTC
We're on a bomb site
behind the tabernacle
looking for some
ammunition for
my catapult
which I carry
in the back pocket
of my jeans
Fay is looking
amongst the debris
of old bombed
out houses
or just area
left where
houses stood
it's a sunny day
holiday time
no school
-makes me happier-
is this one too big?
she asks
I look over
no that's a good one
I say
she brings it over
to where I stand
she holds it
between her
thin finger and thumb
and she drops it
into my palm
I weigh it up
and down then
drop it into
my pouch
-a knotted handkerchief-
she looks at me
her blue eyes
searching me
her fair hair
brought behind
her head in
a ponytail
have you ever
thought about self?
I look at her
self?
I say
what do you mean?
the I of us
what we call me
I look nonplus
and look down
for more small stones
a nun at school
said the I
in Christianity means
the I crossed out
in the form
of a cross
in other words
our self is not
more important
than that I or self
of another
and as a Christian
we should put
the self
of another first
I find a small stone
and pick it up
and finger it
so the cross is
supposed to show
self crossed out?
I say uncertainly
she looks at the stone
I'm holding
yes that's what
she was saying
self denial I think
is what she meant
Fay says
scratching her head
this nun at school
does she ever
tell jokes?
Fay frowns
no not as far
as I've heard
well I could
tell you one
O'Brien told me
but it's not for girls
to hear
not girls
as good as you
I say
Daddy says jokes
are sinful to say
and to hear Fay says
when I innocently
told him one
the other year
a girl at school told me
he spanked me
and said never
to hear or say jokes
ever again
what was the joke?
I ask
shouldn't say
she says
there's only you
and me here
no one will know
if you tell me
except God
and I guess He's
heard it before
I say
she looks at me
her blue eyes
staring
ok but don't
tell Daddy
I told you
she says
I promise not to tell
your old man
I say
well a man took his wife
to the cinema
and as they waited
in the queue
a man in front of them
passed wind
and the husband
said to the man
how dare you
pass wind
in front of my wife
and the man said
sorry I didn't know
it was her turn
I laugh and so does she
and I like how
her eyes sparkle
when she laughs
and her face lights up
like a summer day
then she's looks
at her hands
that was good
I say
but it's sinful
she says
but the brightness
in her face and eyes
didn't go away.
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