The Fall Poem by Trevor Maynard

the carpet was a stringy grass
thick stranded and knotted and of indeterminate brown,
old

it had a straw-like odour
and dust lay thick between the blades of wool
old

it had the itchiness of fibre glass
as i lay the side of my head against it fur to fur
my eyelash lashed it like a willow in the breeze
stroking a placid river with a practiced hand finger to finger
i became so enamoured of its comfort
that i nearly forgot to blink and remind myself i was old

but not for long as this fall had indicated
perhaps my hip was broken
perhaps my knee had popped out of joint
perhaps my legs had just given out
but for ten minutes i had been lain here

i wished someone would come
and that that person who would
would wear white robes and a white smile
and that they would say
it would be alright to let go

when i was a child i lay on the carpet with my cat
licking my fur like my cat, nose to nose with my cat
young

i had yet to love and lose and love again
yet to be a man a father a grandfather a widower
young