Bob Cooper
Stretching It
She calls my name. I follow
her black trousers, white blouse,
merest outline of her underwear,
along the corridor. Behind curtains
I take off my shirt. Put your arms high.
Horizontal. Keep them straight.
She holds my wrist, bends my elbow,
writes things down. Soon
I’ll be laid flat - Just relax - while
she levers my arm towards pain and
I say something. We talk.
This time it’s sleep-walking.
She mentions her brother.
How, before he got married,
he turned up in her bedroom,
switched on the light; just
stood there, smiled, said it was
his room - which it had been
years before. Then he tried to
get into bed. She said
have you been for a wash?
He woke in the bathroom,
the cold water she guessed.
I dress. This is your last one.
We’ve done all we can.
Each exercise stretching limits. I rub
my shoulder, glance at her words:
Mobility now 90%. K Jones.
Page(s) 49
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