The old crowd, what became of them,
possessors of that table in the window?
Week in, week out, they seemed both stunned
and glad to find each other still alive
to buy a round, or in one case begrudge it.
God knows what they found to talk about.
They liked to see the girls go by from work,
then as the evening deepened pass again, adorned
like goddesses, back-combed and insolent
and all too late. The old crowd knew their place.
Don’t say a word. Quick now. The table’s free.
Good evening, ladies. Do ignore us. Thank you.
Sean O'Brien's most recent collection of poems, Embark, appeared in 2022. He is Emeritus Professor of Creative Writing at Newcastle University.
possessors of that table in the window?
Week in, week out, they seemed both stunned
and glad to find each other still alive
to buy a round, or in one case begrudge it.
God knows what they found to talk about.
They liked to see the girls go by from work,
then as the evening deepened pass again, adorned
like goddesses, back-combed and insolent
and all too late. The old crowd knew their place.
Don’t say a word. Quick now. The table’s free.
Good evening, ladies. Do ignore us. Thank you.
Sean O'Brien's most recent collection of poems, Embark, appeared in 2022. He is Emeritus Professor of Creative Writing at Newcastle University.
