NaPM April 30 2015

[Keith]

All things come to an end

You said we would meet on Thursday,
time to talk things through,
a night when buildings wept
and car wipers conspired
to miss you run.
The driver only saw a silhouette
popping out from a shop doorway.
I must have missed your call,
softly the message meandered into rapids,
undoing me a syllable at a time.

You chose the right car
Range rovers are expensive
and quick to shatter life and bone
you didn't even leave a dint,
the driver kept quoting his stopping distances,
dry and wet,
we can all measure them now,
count them in years.

I waited in the bus station café
like we said, sipping cold coffee
playing back your voice message
of the car coming round the corner.