Withdrawal of the Winter Heating Allowance
The February air inside his house
Invades the body. Even bones
Feel threatened. Poverty and cold each souse
His inward flesh. They both are inward clones
Of shivering muscle. English air that used
To be like Shakespeare’s summer has become
Like malice. Gentle auras are bemused
By lack of heating. Comfort now turned scum
Is far beyond his shaking grasp. His wife
Has died so she at least does not congeal
In winter air inside her room. Thus life
Has spared her cancered breast from freezing zeal.
It is as if an omened owl cries out.
Now life is trembling here within, without.
~ Phillip Whidden
by phillipw | Feb 2, 2025 | PO |