The Post Office
Coins stacked like leaning towers of tilted soldiers
Oh the stories they could tell, well traveled
Phone rings, Hello, how may I help you?
Receipt roll falls from the till, unraveled
Could you tell me where my letter is today?
It was posted last Thursday? Around a mile away?
Unlikely,
let me consult my crystal ball
Of course, we’re the post office, we can answer all
Questions,
Ask away, Yes of course I know when your next benefit payment is,
Not one single ounce of common sense, let me tell you this
Story,
Yes I want to hear your life story, of course I have time
It’s not like the queue is wall to door lined
Paper,
And reams of it, more, paper, more ink, more jobs accrued
The workload increases, more tasks to do
You know?
I don’t. No! How could I possibly have the answers
To the question you haven’t asked yet, of course, this is standard
Train tickets?
I’m sorry we are not the train station
It’s only been an hour and I’m losing my patience
Quickly,
I can’t meet your demand any faster, there are others in line
There’s a clock on the wall, don’t ask me the time
Wasters;
The lot of them, the job centre crew, picking up their giro’s
Unkept and impatient, write on their forms, when they leave the biro’s
Dissapear,
Oh I wish I could, Outside I can hear the birds singing
Oh if I was a bird, this phone hasn’t stopped ringing
All day,
I’ve been counting out euros, filling in applications
Not a moment to myself for the entire duration
Of the day,
It’s 2pm, when is lunch? We dare not say
Just no more complaining for the rest of the day
Tickets,
Day tickets? For the bus? Don't be silly... Ohh the coach?
And I’m still being polite with a calm, cool approach
To the chaos,
left on the floor, sweets from the pic n mix, an unsupervised kid,
Does your mum know you’re here? bags a kilo of sweets but only has a quid
Fifty-Fifty,
The chance that I’ll actually get lunch before three
The queue’s to the door and it’s just Sue and me
Waiting,
Always waiting for the chance of a break
Cos our patience is wearing, how much can one take
Your time?
Wasting your time? My time, always frustrated, people complaining
the queue is too long, I’m tired of explaining, our voices are straining,
To be heard,
Please queue with some patience, You'll soon be back home
We will meet your needs before even our own
and we’re trying our best but there’s so much to do.
At the post office.
Copyright © Melanie Jennings | Year Posted 2018
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