The Gift

by Paul Tristram / March 10th, 2019

Two brown boxes, special delivery
for Lord Half-Damp Beer Towel…
my puzzled chops exploded into a grin.
I opened them the wrong way ‘round,
of course I did, it’s how I work.
“Records?” I muttered as I held the box set
of Dead Kennedys The Original 7” Singles.
The second parcel holds more Magic
than any Christmas… unbelievable,
a black briefcase record player…
I was gobsmacked at its perfect beauty.
I’ve played CDs and MP3’s for decades,
and I had forgotten The Ritual,
The Connection, as you lower that arm
down, gently, to rotate, hiss and crackle.
I regressed to adolescence instantly
as I Holidayed In Cambodia,
whilst they were busy Killing The Poor.
THANK YOU, for bringing the Wonder
of yesteryear kicking and screaming
back into my life, for filling a gap
which I never knew was actually there…
and for making this Battle-Scarred
Punk Rocker smile like a child once again.

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’ published by Close To The Bone Publishing is available to purchase right here Read other articles by Paul, or visit Paul's website.

This article was posted on Sunday, March 10th, 2019 at 8:03am and is filed under Poetry.