After Thoughts 1962 Poem by Terry Collett

Benny got off the school bus
and walked up the road
to his parents' house.

His mother was in the kitchen
preparing dinner.

How was school?
She said.

The usual,
he said,
boring.

She smiled:
off you go and get changed;
I'll call when dinner is ready.

He went upstairs to the room
he shared with his younger brother
who was out playing.

He changed out
of his school uniform
into jeans and shirt.

He looked out the window;
Brittlewaite was in his garden
opposite, digging.

He took the book
of birds he had
and opened it.

There was a robin
by the fence;
it sat there watching
Brittlewaite,
looking for worms.

I can still sense
Sheila's lips on mine.

He licked his lips:
wonder if part of her
is still here on my lips?

When we hugged
in that doorway at school
I felt her breasts against me;
softly moving.

If that prefect
hadn't come along
and told us to move on,
we could have been there longer
and late for the next lesson.

He gazed at the apple orchard:
his brother and sisters
were playing a tag game
amongst the trees.

Had my hands
around her waist;
kissed her.

He sighed.

He closed the book of birds;
he wasn't in the mood
for bird watching.

Wonder if we'll get
a chance tomorrow?

Ships passing
in the night
kind of thing.

Rennie said girls
were a waste of time.

Felt her close to me;
did strange things to me.

Felt like a sailor
lost on the sea.