Met

I should’ve been asleep, but sat upright
clasping a cup of cold coffee
to my chest and listening out
for everyone who hadn’t met yet…

Remember the Brandywell Lane bus stop
down by the market where we met?
Yes, oh, how good was that?

And oh, yes wasn’t it wonderful?
Isn’t it great: when a seagull swoops down
as you pull open the chip paper,
and whacks your hat off your head into low tide.

And yes, isn’t it fantastic?
The unexpected. Your hat now scrounging
in the dull sand with the waves teasing it away.

But oh, no, look, isn’t it terrible,
now that hat won’t see the sand again.
And oh, isn’t it heartbreaking
when you think about it?

When you sit upright,
the coffee is finished
and you remember
that the market by the bus stop
on Brandywell Lane is being demolished.