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Astonishment of sheep grazing

on brown parched land

near the filling station,  

a couple of lambs, plus egrets.

I swim lengths of the pool, tracked

by a dead leaf, a drowned wasp.

One afternoon I step outside

and can’t breathe.

 

A sudden rush of Levante wind

slams doors. Family argument

next door, screams and tears,

two daughters from Barcelona,

back with their parents for the summer.

Francisco and I talk about the gangsters

of Marbella as he drives into town.

He toots a car attempting

 

an illegal turn on the dual carriageway.

The kind of guy, he says.

What if he has an AK-47? I ask.

We laugh, a little nervously.

What is the English word for

cleaning drug money? he asks.

Launder, I say. Like laundry.

 

We share the Parque de la Constitucion,

its trees and fountains a thankful refuge,

with blackbirds and parakeets.  

Once I saw a butterfly in the middle

of winter as I hung around there

while my wife helped our daughter

choose her wedding dress.

 

◄ Sunrise

London September 2021 ►

Comments

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Greg Freeman

Sun 12th Sep 2021 11:06

Thanks for your comment, Stephen. And for the likes, Stephen G, Holden, Julie, and Aisha. Written during our recent stay with our daughter and her family in Estepona. Yesterday we heard that they had wildfires nearby, and had to keep the windows closed. Since then the wind has changed, apparently, and thankfully.

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Stephen Atkinson

Sun 12th Sep 2021 09:22

A well written piece, Greg. Full of open questions & mystery

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