She’s Got Ghosts In Her Hair

by Paul Tristram / December 17th, 2017

… they’re trying to get at her ‘Secrets’.
Shoulder-peering downwards and inwards.
But, she’s not having any of it…
yo-yo brushing them off,
when ignoring becomes too much of a chore.
Those ‘Secrets’ are buried deep,
beneath a lifetime of soul-scars and bruises.
There is no map to charter,
nor X marks the spot…
and she’s long ago learnt to re-bury them
away from solitary palm trees
and Queen Elizabeth shaped rock outcrops.
Yet, ‘Hidden’ means ‘Invitation’ to some…
I see her sat upon the cold January ground
outside the doorway of Shoe Zone in Newquay,
like a pencil sketch or rubbing
shadowed by the almost midnight half moon.
With a tattered cardboard begging sign
resting haphazardly
against one of her ‘Two Sizes Too Big’ para boots,
which reads ‘I’m Not Going To Lie, It’s For Beer’.
Whispering threats and complicated mysteries
under her sharp, steaming breath,
whilst fighting an almost invisible battle
with the unwelcome company she’s a-keeping.

Paul Tristram is a widely published Welsh writer who deals in the Lowlife, Outsider, and Outlaw genres.  He wrote his first poem as a teenager following his release from the (Infamous) Borstal ‘HMP Portland’, and he has been creating Literary Terrorism ever since.  His novel ‘Crazy Like Emotion’ is available to purchase right here . Also his collection of shorter fiction Kicking Back Drunk ‘Round The Candletree Graves' is available to purchase at https://bookgoodies.com/a/B0DFMTSR4F Both books are published by Close To The Bone Publishing. Read other articles by Paul, or visit Paul's website.

This article was posted on Sunday, December 17th, 2017 at 8:03am and is filed under Poetry.