(k52)

"ah, shut up"
my son to a baby
mother looks daggers

Composed: Stockport, 4th September 2002

Unpublished

Waiting

WAITING

a solo alphenga

always the long wait
to see the doctor
at the eye clinic

blue flowers in a vase
starting to wilt

caught short
the little girl squirms
her mother looks cross

dreading the needle
middle-aged man shivers

early morning
terrier barks furiously
at approaching milkman

fog-bound passengers
phoning their loved ones

gulls wheel
behind the cruise liner
expecting scraps

holy mountain
hell for climbers

in the gallery
next to the nude
a portrait of mary

january sales —
city traffic gridlocks

kicking the habit
ex-smoker spits out
chewed up pencil ends

licking his lips
at the bride’s first meal

master cueman
escapes the snooker
and pots another red

neon lights flashing
above the bordello

only one customer
enters the doors —
the pub with no beer

preparing for her night’s work
the stripper gets all dressed up

querying the bill
angry diner swallows
the torn-up pieces

resolving the argument
in adjacent beds

stuck in the quicksand
tractors and ladders
work against the tide

tempted by salesman’s offer
her nest egg cracked open

under lock and key
his collection
of used underwear

vacuuming the carpet
her latest fetish

winter storms forcast
they struggle with tarpaulins
to cover the boat

xeroxing the plans
for the christmas party

yellow crocuses
emerge early —
frostless New Year

zealously guarding
his innermost thoughts

© Gerald England

Composed: Stockport, 27th January 1998

Publications

1998 Still(Internet)
1998 Thorny Locust (USA)

The Uncalm

THE UNCALM

as sky and moor merge
the distinction
between
hillside and cloud
blurs

we are waiting
wondering
just when the wind will
drop
and the snow
fall

shivering
anticipating
we hurry
to complete chores
hoping soon
to get back
to the safety
of home fires

there we wall ourselves
in
from winter’s
desolate whiteness

© Gerald England

Composed: Stockport, 17th December 1997

Publication

1998 The Endless Mountains Review (USA)

[6m]

© Gerald England

Composed: Stockport, 28th October 1997

Publication

2005 World Haiku Review (Internet)

(f43)

passing McVitie's
the warm odour of baking
makes me feel hungry

© Gerald England

Composed: Stockport, 9th September 1997

Unpublished

[7i]

Composed: Stockport, 19th March 1991

Publication

2005 World Haiku Review (Internet)