Memory Poem by Andrew Lee

The claws, veins and roots of a brown panther dwindled, slashed

and broken by another male, when they fought over a female.

What could compensate for the dark red blood?

When you get the chance to turn grey, teeth half-gone,

will that once-in-a-lifetime glimpse catch up with us

as we fold and roll a cheap cigar,

lying back on a rumpled beach chair,

looking at girls who frolick and fade in the evening dust,

like oysters powderised and blown away by the breezes?