‘plimsoles’ they called them
in their not-forgotten
british background best english
and we strode thirty of us
in line up a mountain
single file
(don’t disturb the traffic)
(don’t die en route)
to a waterfall
you were surprised i’d never been
and smiles on faces that never
smile
lit up and dove in
i sat for 30 minutes under the pounding
water in my shorts
i watched in silence
heavy water drowning out the joy around
me
so i can enjoy mine

then we stop, add shoes, shirts
and stride thirty of us
in line up a mountain
single file
(don’t disturb the traffic)
(don’t die en route)
to a hellhole we named ‘home’