Soho’s Polly (Nichols)

by Paul Tristram / January 26th, 2020

That Ripping Knife finished off,
in a gruesome fashion,
what the Bottle had already started.
The Soul doesn’t get
much more Shipwrecked
than that of an alcohol,
Rough Sleeper…
out traipsing the cold,
early morning,
darkened streets
around Trafalgar Square.
Tis 3 pence for a tall glass of Gin,
or 3 pence for a Doss-house Bed,
and it’s the very same price
for a trip betwixt your legs
… but, there’s always
at least one Public Tavern
between where you’re standing
and a manky, rented pillow.
The ‘Fates’ are never kind,
after a bad choice has been made…
but, those ‘Fates’
don’t have themselves a Heart,
feel the bitter winds
biting sharply into their bones,
nor need to medicate
the mess and damage
alive inside a Streetwalker’s head.

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, January 26th, 2020 at 8:02am and is filed under Poetry.