Psalm 102: ‘shun ye the vortex’
taut-faced Madonna sitting in her milky bath
surrounded by floating petals
she’s hunched up to her knees: all wet
talking about the great equaliser: and all going down together
rich and poor: her knuckles white as she grips the taps
I walk up the stairs
I walk down the stairs
Trump rambling about a wonder drug
used for treating malaria: it might work here
says he is feeling good: says he’s feeling optimistic
denies that America is afraid: he is afraid
I walk up the stairs
I walk down the stairs
pubs have stayed open in defiance
people insist on a party
curfew is threatened
if we don’t stay at home
13 steps and several dust angels
clinging to the risers
yesterday spoke to my neighbour
over the garden fence
works in a lab
said the big V: more infectious than flu
reach the top of the stairs
wonder how I got there
slowly walk back down
Knotbrook Taylor is an Angus-based poet, winner of the 2014 Erbacce Prize for his collection Ping-Pong In The Rain. His poems have also appeared in Scottish Lighthouse Poems (2011) and Beatitudes (2007). www.knotbrook.co.uk
