My mum’s dream job
There I am in the bus and I see
that sun flashes off its windows
so light jives along the street
I wonder if people squint
as the light flicks past their eyes
and what happens when light
hits a satellite dish does it
ping off out into space
maybe head back to the sun
I sit in the hot bus and I think
how I woke up early because
I’d seen my mum’s face
on a pink and white box
that contained ponds cold cream
only when I looked close her face
started to age
although I knew she always
wanted to be a model I said
to someone I’m not sure who
my mum never used cold cream
in her life so I don’t know why
she’s gone and advertised it
now she’s dead.
Sharon Phillips retired from a career in education in 2015. Her poems have been published in Snakeskin and Three Drops from a Cauldron, and on Algebra of Owls and Amaryllis. She is currently studying for an MA in Creative Writing.