~

december’s anti-checklist ( tsilkcehc-itna s’rebmeced )

…

an absence of bees

hornets & fleas

   unseen, catalogued

   & dutifully un-noted

not a swallow swoops

nor a swift swishes

      as we pause & sneeze

      under leafless trees

skin a shade of ghost

un-stung by nettles

      blanker than a cheque

      lifeless like a high street

with its faux-snow sprayed

over shop windows

      muzzled folk inside

      spot their smileless eyes

missing like a clue

mister pavlov’s dogs

      drooling for the bell

      not the juicy steak

where the air is listless

all’s the so of what

      see december un-pen

      ticking not a jot

…