I don’t know who lives there
but when you walk past
it’s impossible not to see in
as the window looks out
onto the street
you make a point of trying
not to look to keep walking
but you can’t help but glance just enough
to take it all in how
always about this time of an evening
by the light of a table lamp
a man – the same man,
neither old nor young – is sitting
at one end of the sofa – the same end – alone
doing nothing not even
watching TV or scrolling on a phone
he sits as if in a waiting room
conscious of the presence of others
although there’s no-one else there and
it’s hard to tell from his face
what he sees in his mind or for real
as he stares into space
or at the pictures on the wall
or if he feels sad or happy
or nothing at all
.
Dominic Rivron
Picture Nick Victor