Hide and Seek
Today is the fourth Sunday in Trinity
so the heavy brocade on the altar
is green, and gold braid snakes
above the hem. I lift a corner gingerly
and squint underneath – like I'm peaking
under an old lady's skirt – peering
through whorls of dust and matted fluff
to find – YOU,
a large man who made me laugh
Left in an oak casket with a gold clasp
to keep you there, you're waiting for her.
Sixty years you were together
and it's seven years since your death.
HURRY UP PLEASE IT'S TIME
she's waiting as well, hanging around
to join you. Ashes to ashes.
HURRY UP PLEASE IT'S TIME
for both to be buried
in the church yard by the cherry tree.
* Fiona Boyle, who we've published in IS&T before, is doing a creative writing degree at Winchester University.
