four minute warning

 four minute warning 

having a pee

looking down into the porcelain bowl

i thought

if there is a nuclear war

this pan will be vaporised

and i haven’t finished my pee

sunday

 sunday 

a chocolate dab

before sunday school

tinned peaches and evap for tea

tv via the click click of the redifusion switch

the cat on the rug in front of a roaring fire

a black night beyond the lace curtains

a longly draught from the curtained stairs

orange street light motionless in the parlour

where the gas meter whirs slowly

and so it goes

and so it goes

early

 early

before it’s light

the creaky stairs

sees them take fright

the black pads scurrying

cockroaches hurrying

back to their lairs

behind the boards

of that room at night

THEN

with the heel of a boot

laid to hand

splattering the hoards

on to the promised land

so now you understand 

my early days

coal grit

kiddo

genuinely if

 genuinely if

if

i call this a poem

is it genuine 

if 

you call it a poem 

is it genuine

if

we both call it a poem

is it genuine

if 

everyone calls it a poem

is it genuine

if 

no one calls it a poem 

is it genuine 

if

everyone agrees on the meaning

of genuine

genuine or not

can a poem ever be

if

heaven help us

 heaven help us

we are there

now

where else is there

over there

where you are

is that heaven

which of us will move

if we both moved

then go to the beginning

and read the instructions again

how to write ~ well

 how to right ~ well

afraid to ask how to write

well in case 

my ability to write non-stop

stops

or changes to a doppelgänger 

of laterally inverted work

after writing ask yourself 

how well did i write

was it alright

well ~ was it

is a deep well

dawn on the way to get the papers

 dawn on the way to get the papers 

the warp and weft

of the dawn today

wrapped me warm

as i made my way

to the newspaper shop

for a dose of sad

a dose of harm

the life some never had

but the sun is rising

my feet are free

the birds are singing 

the way it’s meant to be 

blanket coverage

forgive me