Heavens Above

Sleet clung to the eaves and dripped slowly down As the mist laid a shroud on the face of the town, And walking the main drag hill to the square, I saw Icicles glisten from guttering, hung there As spears of tears or the last wishes of raindrops To solidify as decor on markets and chip-shops. I saw in the demon haze of whiskey and beer The beauty of winter glow white and austere. And in the staggering of my ill-footed stride, Felt the tilt of the earth as my eyes opened wide. The ground, a conjurors tablecloth, pulled out from my feet, Slowly, pin-wheeling arms, as my heart skipped a beat, Or two or maybe three, I felt the night shift ‘Till I lay on my back in a frozen snowdrift. Looking up at the heavens above, I saw stars Skate across my red eyes as white glittering scars. Later, picked up and dusted off, coat wet and cold In the smoky pub clamour I sought to control My more fanciful urges, curled my hand like a vice About glasses of bourbon and chunks of cracked ice; I could not suppress thoughts of the years I had seen Whilst MTV blared from the huge plasma screen. And as the chain stoking old year had minutes to die I saw the stars rise again in my pickled mind’s eye. When the countdown began, raised my glass in a toast To all that would be and my favourite ghost; To the heavens above, zooming far into space Rose the exultant cries of the whole human race, And I would like to say that I added my own Though the truth is I never felt so much alone; And in that aloneness wheezed loss and dismay When the new year began and the old slipped away.