Hellsteeth
His house is sinking
The tin roof crumbling
He was springtime
Up on rotten ladders
Painting it red
A balancing act
Juggling brush, can, and glass
I used to sit on cushions outside
Looking up squinting
Pouring the drinks, laughing
Cautioning him on the treachery of ladders
Now a hedge eats the front of the house
I try not to see it
Flying past on the road
Because I can’t stop
He isn’t belly-deep in rushes
Or chasing pigs
His dog doesn’t hear my car coming
There’s nothing out-of-date to drink
No one there
Since he’s been gone
Every day of the last ten years
Jessamine O Connor lives in south Sligo, facilitates The Wrong Side of the Tracks Writers group, and The Hermit Collective art/music/poetry performance ensemble, The Hermit Collective
Note: Hellsteeth (winner of the Iyeats award 2011, on-line and installed in The Hawkswell Theatre etc)