A dream of the day
Dear god it’s hot in this house tonight
You’d wish for the clack of a fan
Ceiling mounted, full tilt in India
For a breeze from the Goan shore
No air, no breath, a dark and star-filled
Navy night
Moon gorgeous glamour
Three days short of, very nearly full
We’ve spread ourselves, upstairs and down
And flung all windows wide
Barely a sheet for cover
Two babies, damp curls
In a dream of the day
And a girl who is sad for the hornets
Destroyed by the man with a can
Poisoned, she’s sobbed for the deaths
She thinks wanton, no need, she’s railed
Wailed, fretted to sleep
And me with the pen to write it
To pin down the butterfly night
How the green tree frog, quacking
Hopped in for coolness
And the shock as the stick creature jumped
Praying mantis, bicycling in air
As we took tea
Then always of course, the cricket chorus
Loud as tinnitus
The geckos slinky on the walls
Three fierce hornets, dealt a deathly blow
Just the one world
Hot star-filled navy night
Just the one world
To share
Dear god it’s hot in this house tonight
You’d wish for the clack of a fan
Ceiling mounted, full tilt in India
For a breeze from the Goan shore
No air, no breath, a dark and star-filled
Navy night
Moon gorgeous glamour
Three days short of, very nearly full
We’ve spread ourselves, upstairs and down
And flung all windows wide
Barely a sheet for cover
Two babies, damp curls
In a dream of the day
And a girl who is sad for the hornets
Destroyed by the man with a can
Poisoned, she’s sobbed for the deaths
She thinks wanton, no need, she’s railed
Wailed, fretted to sleep
And me with the pen to write it
To pin down the butterfly night
How the green tree frog, quacking
Hopped in for coolness
And the shock as the stick creature jumped
Praying mantis, bicycling in air
As we took tea
Then always of course, the cricket chorus
Loud as tinnitus
The geckos slinky on the walls
Three fierce hornets, dealt a deathly blow
Just the one world
Hot star-filled navy night
Just the one world
To share
22nd August 2010, Hounoux, for Lily
I was looking at the moon last night and thinking of you all. What a night (Saturday?) you share the story well! Too hot, too tired, too much sun? Feeling fed up with our ongoing monsoon here, better not mention my slug and snail attack!
ReplyDeletePhew!!!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteStill wish I was there.
You would love it Pam, and so much better to be trying to cool down and to have to dip in the pool for refreshing, than to be cold and wet and feeling that summer is lost. This evening it has suddenly cooled down and the air is fresher after being so highly charged I've had a fearful headache. The moon is tonight totally full and beyond beautiful in the sky. Another praying mantis jumped in my hair in the kitchen tonight- don't know why suddenly so many.
ReplyDelete