pulling leicester from a plastic tube in a southbank market
the marketwoman with tie dye hair flogs musty
paper maps. spreads your hometown before
us, slightly crinkled. in the crowsfoot creases
your fingertips tease the contours, unfurl
the fields & footpaths you trekked as a child.
soon, i cross country stiles at your tongue’s tip,
hear schoolbells sing in the pit of your throat, bite
deep into blackberries you’ve sown in my head.
quieting, your world rolls to a perfect cylinder,
drops softly on my dusky december mittens.
Laurie Eaves’ debut collection, Biceps (2020), is published by Burning Eye Books and his work has been anthologised by Bad Betty Press, Poetry Rivals and Spoken Word London. He co-hosts the Dead Darlings podcast and co-produces the Vogon Poetry Slam.