My dad had cycled over the high bridge, outpacing the wind ...

This will feel like a bee sting the staff nurse said - 

Once the wound in my dad's scalp was numb, she stitched it up with three stitches - 

In the curtained bay next to us, an old lady whimpered as her dislocated shoulder was reset - 

No more, no more she cried out - 

I gazed down at my dad - 

Thank you for being here he said - 

It was two thirty in the morning - we were bathed in heartless light - 

I remembered when my dad had placed me upon the handlebars of his bike - I'd been eight years old, a dreamy smiling boy - 

He'd been taking me to the naval hospital - there was a blade of grass stuck fast in my throat - 

My dad had cycled over the high bridge, outpacing the wind - 

02.30

Tuesday 15 November 2015

Queen Alexandra Hospital 

Portsmouth