With open-mouthed gutters...

Backstreet in Newcastle....x

Walking in these waterlogged backstreets
With open-mouthed gutters
Filled with green algae
And with slime and grime
Isn’t leisurely
To say the least,
Gives no room
For reverie
Or travelling back in time;
Feet always unsure
Fretful of a pratfall
And slipping
Into muddy oblivion.
But is this the whole story of
My mega city
Or a significant part?
Her tumbledown bistros fail
To shelter me from
The jostle and
The crazy loudness
Of the upbeat street.
Suburban girls dance
And twirl to entertain
Jilted artistes
With fleeting old favorite singles
Wishing for just
a stroke of genius.
I walk pass,
I devour roast devilled fish
By the roadside.
I forget the dirt,
And the gutter.
I am back,
I adapt;
I forget where I'm coming from


by Victor Azubike, Nigeria