Email Poem

Your IP Address: 216.73.216.110

Your Email Address:

To Email Address:

Subject

Personal Note:

Poem Title:

Poem

TATTOO DEPORTATION

I’d almost forgotten that damned tattoo
A small symbol that years ago, I had got
It was a couple of lads, drunk on vacation
The tattooist did it in red on my shoulder
I’m a bit embarrassed now that I am older
Its meaning, I never heard any explanation
Just that for a day or two, my skin felt hot
It’s small and discreet, so what should I do

The symbol meant almost nothing to me
A kind of squiggly letter, kind of Arabic
Yet I thought nothing of it at immigration
But wearing a singlet vest it was on display
The guy scowled and others took me away
I tried to plead ignorance, I wasn’t Haitian
Yet cuffed, I got scared and felt quite sick
Marched off to an office, no longer free

It was a nightmare that lasted several days
They kept pointing at the symbol, annoyed
It appeared to be a sign of local rebel group
And plaintively, ever insisting I knew zero
Perhaps they thought I was the group hero
I was sweaty, trying to jump through a hoop
Thinking of damaging phrases I had to avoid
And all the time under the guy’s steely gaze

Finally, with no answers given, I was spared
Hustled back to a plane, to be headed home
By now, there was some local press interest
I looked up that symbol and found the link
But it was not quite what others may think
I was keeping silent, as I just thought it best
As my world had turned into monochrome
With it now erased, well, I no longer cared

CAPTCHA Preview

Type the characters you see in the picture

Required