OMEN

First published in May 2022

A picture falls
from the wall,
'One of my favourites,'
he says. It is of Mary
looking pleased
with herself and
a smug-faced
Christ-child. Not
that he's religious
but it's one
he likes a lot.

We're getting ready
to leave for home,
but he rescues and
re-hangs the picture.
Is this the last time?
I wonder. Is
the fallen painting
a bad omen?

I shiver in the heat.