The Circle of Life
written by: Andrea Walker
Somewhere, somebody is about to take their last breath
Don’t scare me with your stupid jokes
Get up off the floor!
Yes, the air is about to turn as blue as his lips
Elsewhere, somebody is about to
sit down to eat their last meal
Last night’s leftovers – you don’t mind do you? It’s just my hair appointment ran over…
He’s never ever complained about the frequent lateness of his meals in the past
Tonight, he’ll stay permanently silent
As he slumps suddenly
at their kitchen table
His blood, the colour of ketchup
will drip from the corner of his gaping mouth
As she touches her newly dyed hair and pouts at the mirror
Before ringing for help
And somebody else, is about to
make love, one-last-time
Hurry up and get it over with, I’ve got a lot to do
She’ll chastise
For the throes of passion
were lost, too many years ago to count
And in the morning, when she finds him
Lay deadpan, beside her
As cold and frozen, as ice cream
Grey, as her new lounge carpet
That he worked seven-extra-shifts, to pay for
She’ll surely feel some semblance of guilt?
Before ringing her lover, of some years, to come over and help deal with the formalities
Yet somebody else is about to experience
The utter joy of first-time-birth
Legs akimbo, stirrups cutting off the circulation
Push harder, he’s crowning
As she whispers
My Prince!
And he screams his introduction to the world
As one mother is weary
Eight children in
She’s had a belly full labour
Jesus, Mary and Joseph, let it be quick this time!
And its father, is nowhere to be found
He lost interest after baby-number-four
Once he’d got his son-and-heir
Then…
Give him air! He’s struggling to breathe unaided
Now she feels guilty and a fat tear plops onto her fat belly, still swollen from the memory of him
She hopes he’s a fighter, just like his Da
Finally, one person is about to receive a phone call
We’ve found a donor!
Dreams of babies and nurseries and tiny wee clothes
Will dance her up to bed tonight
It’s been three-long-years, they’ve waited
Patience, as they say, is a virtue
A life for a life
An eye for an eye
One soul enters
As another one dies
One in, one out
Isn’t it always the way?
It’s the circle of life
So-they-say
- The Circle of Life - April 30, 2026
- No Words - February 1, 2026
- Hubble Bubble - October 24, 2025
