Page 143 of The Black Flamingo
head and ears,
as we speed the winding tracks.
There’s one point
where it feels like it’s going to launch us
into the sky
and we might take flight for a second before
plummeting into
the water.
I imagine us all dying
like this, strapped
into our seats, unable to get free,
sinking together
in a roller coaster carriage.
It’s just a momentary
thought but it feels so real.
I take a sharp intake of
cold air and grip Anna’s hand.
To have a loving family
is to feel afraid and yet believe
you are going to be all right.
Mum and Anna
want to go shopping
in The Lanes
and North Laine.
A bunch of quirky boutique shops.
Mum says if I come
she’ll buy me something.
And this is always
how she gets me
to come shopping.
