Patrick Widdess (2.25.07)

A blind man won't thank you for a looking glass.

Christmas brings a desktop diary,
personal organiser and a pocket diary in my stocking.
All for a gap year with too many gaps.


An old lady carries a phone with fifty kitsch
danglies.
I comment on the proliferation
and she presses a beady blue panther on me
to dress my own naked cell.


Two birthdays, a Christmas and Valentine's day
have each brought me a new wallet.
But I still have a pocketful of loose change and an
overdraft.


A kindly woman fills a cafe table with plaster
figurines
and bestows them on unwitting patrons.
After she's gone one remains in front of me.
A pale girl with a sweet smile, twirling an umbrella.