the bluebottle
died immediately on impact
the crunch against the window
unmistakable
my father stood newspaper in hand
the single wrist flick
had broken the fly trajectory
sent it to a splattering death
it had buzzed around the room
for hours
around the food on the table
around his head
wearing down my father’s patience
until he snapped
grabbed his newspaper
rolled it into a baton
and lunged a single swipe
and it was silent
though unsettled by this
act of brutality
I thought it better to stay quiet
as I watched him eat his cake
telling mum about the fly
I didn’t tell him
what I had learned about bluebottles
I just watched him eat his cake
together with the dead fly’s vomit
Jim Bennett, has written 74 books and numerous chapbooks and pamphlets in a 50 year career as a poet. Jim lives near Liverpool in the UK and tours giving readings of his work throughout the year. He is widely published and has won many competitions and awards for poetry and performance. He runs www.poetrykit.org one of the world’s most successful internet sites for poets.