SQUEEZED LIKE LONELINESS

First published in ?

space filled to the brim
with spider-whiteness
no bird call
no knock on the door
loneliness
squeezed into a corner
like a hunted animal
waiting
waiting for the phone to ring
for a voice on the other end
of the line
email doesn’t do it
nor Facebook
nor Linked-in
loneliness needs
its own space and time
excelling in taunting
with borrowed laughter
from across the street
the sight of hand on hand
on a Sainsbury’s trolley
a stranger’s accidental touch
his words of apology
like the last drops of loneliness
squeezed from a wash-rag

"The poem’s unusual title and striking similes, ‘like the last drops of loneliness squeezed from a wash-rag’ immediately caught my attention. A take on a topical issue of the day, the poem’s power lies in its short lines, its stand-out images,’’spider-whiteness’, ‘borrowed laughter from across the street’, ‘loneliness needs its own space and time’ and its blend of pathos and irony. This poem is a stark message for our time."
Julie Sampson, Poetry Space Spring Showcase, March 2019