THE WORD
The Word follows us around the city
Peering over our shoulders
Pouring itself into coffee cups
Infiltrating the cake.
It sits just outside our conversation
Putting full stops on all our sentences,
Making smart comments
About killing our plans, dead.
It whispers about hospital corridors
In supermarket aisles
Waiting rooms, at bus stops
Funerals, at restaurant tables.
The Word is inside you.
Swiping glances
At your womb, your stomach
Your strong beating heart.
And, no surprise,
Since we are so closely intertwined,
It’s inside me too.
Tripping me as I search for words
Pulling the strings of my limbs
Pushing me closer to you
And then pulling you away.
Peering over our shoulders
Pouring itself into coffee cups
Infiltrating the cake.
It sits just outside our conversation
Putting full stops on all our sentences,
Making smart comments
About killing our plans, dead.
It whispers about hospital corridors
In supermarket aisles
Waiting rooms, at bus stops
Funerals, at restaurant tables.
The Word is inside you.
Swiping glances
At your womb, your stomach
Your strong beating heart.
And, no surprise,
Since we are so closely intertwined,
It’s inside me too.
Tripping me as I search for words
Pulling the strings of my limbs
Pushing me closer to you
And then pulling you away.
2018.