Isobel Montgomery Campbell
The child lover
You have set the boys humming round you
watching your gaudy model boats whine
about their given piece of lake.
Of those that stay
my son has loitered too long, becomes
infested with interest -
caught up in the detail, the way
you had hoped. Soon
You are a friend, close afternoons pass,
you bestowing adult favours;
you give him presents
phone him, film him. I come
to watch. Your eyes
droop like the rest of you,
describe your loneliness,
lull me with guilt:
see how you care for him,
have so much time for him -
and I have so much else.
But you hide too much...
At home I carry my son’s tears,
uniform my speech with silence
protecting his innocence;
while tomorrow the sun will shine
and you will set the boys humming once again.
Page(s) 49-50
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