Poem 25

I almost ran over this boy … one of his siblings called his name and that specific name lassoed him back into himself before it would have been forever hollow … the arrow layout of the first two stanzas is to suggest movement forward and back …

( … in the beautiful blue afternoon wavering like a stem – I’ve always thought that was lovely … )

Close Calling

                                   Samoan name dropping like a hoop
			          out of the sky onto the kid
			         taking his last step/ third step
			        over the white line
                                Samoan name wakes him
                               in the middle of the road
                              obvious really
                             great big white car


		        going to kill him


		            he dodges back you've got to admire
			     the reflexes most kids go forward
                              and we punch through the bit of space
                               I last saw him in he's perhaps a couple
                                of inches off to the side somewhere
                                 round the back door thinking of running
                                  already starting
                                   to run



		   I bowl him down in my dream by the hundreds
		   reaping that third step out of a bloody field
		   of names
                   his name called him still sleeping
		   in the beautiful blue afternoon
		   wavering like a stem
		   the thump that I dub in 
                                                             hoop of his name 
		   spinning slowly down empty
		   on the road