‘Chris’, hippie appearance, sorrowful eyes

Another life story at the AA
meeting. He began with the gullible
stepfather, the mother’s fantasies, then

we heard about his unseen real father’s
dominance, his adolescent interest
in the spiritual life, his scorn for hire

purchase, his qualities of leadership.
He loved to play tricks, hated violence,
and although women adored him, men, too,

from all walks of life, he seemed celibate.
He saw it coming, predicted it, when
his own people betrayed him, crucified

him really. He would cry out for a drink,
felt desperate when he thought he had been
abandoned. One of his best mates denied

knowing him, and after he woke in a
cave, alone, bleeding, left for dead, that was
when he knew his life had hit rock bottom.

Commentators’ Team

Defence: I know that’s a cliché/ It’s a known fact/ It’s an arm wrestle/ Scoreboard pressure/ They’re under the pump/ Time’s ticking away.

Midfield: He needs to stand up and be counted/ A living legend/ On a learning curve/ A season-defining game/ Statistically speaking/ Where angels fear to tread.

Attack: Absolutely sensational/ He’s on fire/ Last roll of the dice/ No pain, no gain/ Through the eye of a needle/ Winners are grinners.

Interchange: Horribly wrong/ It’s a tragedy/ At the end of the day/ The bottom line.

Ian C Smith’s work has been published in  BBC Radio 4 Sounds,The Dalhousie Review, Gargoyle, Griffith Review, Honest Ulsterman, Southword, Stand, & The Stony Thursday Book.  His seventh book is wonder sadness madness joy, Ginninderra (Port Adelaide).  He writes in the Gippsland Lakes area of Victoria, and on Flinders Island.

You can find more of Ian’s work here on Ink Pantry.