Pugilism
Away from chaos radio and noisy gadgets
I try to hear my own voice.
It is jumbled, jerky, muddled
&
When it hears me listening it shut’s up.
Intruder, it whispers under my breath and hides behind an eyebrow.
Another voice comes, quite the opposite of my sonorous lilt
An abrupt jibber-jabber
accompanied by
a mellifluous buzzer.
Just as I begin to make it out
It stops and hides behind an eyelid
~
Unperturbed I resume my
interrupted bout
of shadow boxing.
So far the shadow is ahead by two points:
it is southpaw, dogged, cunning, experienced.
I stand firm, steely jawed, granite eyed,
bleeding, unfeeling, waiting.
Rope a dope, Ali called it;
or, was that Angelo?
~
Zap, I’m downed
a momentary lapse is all it takes
bloody WASPs
get me every time
I let my guard down