Changing Room

my shoes removed
my pant legs rolled
the water is too deep
water on stairs
without waterfalls
I wade through the angled water
not on it
at the bottom of the angled waters I reach a door
to what should be the changing room
men in a bar
carrying out life boats
I need to change my clothes
but this is a bar with life boats
Inflatable lifeboats taken from the bar
which should be filled with lockers and benches
I need to change my clothes

I wade through the men with their lifeboats
through to the bar
the changing room

I’m now in intensive care
a hospital
confused I wade through the men and their lifeboats
out of this changing room

the doors all look the same
the men’s room is now a woman’s room
the sign on the door is changing
the changing room keeps changing

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Aunt Betty, Aunt Betty

aunt betty?
aunt betty?
do you see me?
do you see me?
play the ukulele
play the ukulele
aunt betty?
aunt betty?
your coffee overflows
your coffee overflows
can I play you a song?
can I play you a song?
aunt betty?
aunt betty?
can you take out your eyes?
can you take out your eyes?
at the breakfast table
at the breakfast table
aunt betty?
aunt betty?
you have the wrong colours again!
you have the wrong colours again!
your right eye is blue
your left eye is purple
didn’t aunt nancy
help you put in your eyes?
help you put in your eyes?
I saw your eyes last night
I saw your eyes last night
in the bottom of the drawer
in the bottom of the drawer
I switched them around
I switched them around
aunt betty?
aunt betty?
can you take out your eyes?
can you take out your eyes?
play the ukulele
play the ukulele
drink coffee
drink coffee
sing us a song
sing us a song
‘five foot two,
eyes are blue’
and purple

---

Heart

Yesterday the doctor and nurse
needed to access my heart

a careful incision was made
down my chest and

my ribs were gently pulled
apart

a 10 inch long incision
oozing

blood stitched up both flaps
of skin and

a zipper strip sewn onto each
side and

faceted
down

the zipper mechanism was added
and tested:

z z z i p! AND A CATCH!
on one main artery

causing a shooting pain
down my left leg

a careful (?) tug on the
zipper

enabled the
continuation of closure

for some time I
was left

for a time I imagined
that my fly was open

hours later
the doctor and nurse

returned to check on
my heart

slowly unzipping my chest
my heart pounded

blood oozed slightly
warmly and was

soaked up by a fresh piece
of cotton gauze

“Your heart is fine” they said
as they lifted their shirts

exposing their zippers
on their chests

“Would you like to unzip my heart?”
the nurse asked

“No thank you”
The doctor had already unzipped

his fly and his organ - pumping
was exposed

“Life is rare, bloody, red, and tender”
he said, and he placed his hand
on his heart
“You’re doing fine”
“You’re doing fine”

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(c) Larry Matthews. All rights reserved.

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