AFTER LOW TEA 1958

KIDS IN LONDON IN 1958 AND TRUTH AND LIES AND CHURCH SINGING AND CHIPS

After tea
seeing that
her old man

isn't home
I go knock
Ingrid's door

her mother answers
what you want?
she asks me

can Ingrid
come on out?
where abouts?

here and there
it's too late
getting dark

it's not dark
and it's just
5pm

she stares hard
looks past me
at the sky

her father
will be home
very soon

and will want
to know where
she has gone

she tells me
then tell him
she's at church

we're singing
in the choir
I tell her

and are you?
sure we are
ask Ingrid

she looks back
into the flat
INGRID HERE!

she bellows
Ingrid comes
to the door

this boy says
you're going
to the church

and singing
in the choir
is that true?

sure it is
I tell her
would Ingrid

lie to you?
well Ingrid?
her mother

says to her
Ingrid nods
and says yes

her eyes gaze
at me through
her glasses

all right then
off you go
her mother

says to her
so we go
down the stairs

of the flats
looking out
as we do

in case her
father comes
back from work

we go out
through the Square
up towards

Harper Road
you lied good
I tell her

I didn't lie
not really
I only said

yes to her
Ingrid says
but Dad will

want to know
what we did
at choir

and what church
we went to
then he'll know

it's a lie
and beat me
she utters

I know where
we can sing
in choir

I tell her
at a church?
she asks me

sure it is
so we walk
to the left

out onto
Bath Terrace
and on to

the Gospel
Hall near by
where One Eye

(the guy's got
just one eye)
holds meeting

for singing
Benedict
he utters

come to sing?
and who's this?
she's Ingrid

come to sing
o that's good
One Eye says

we go in
to the hall
where others

are sitting
down in chairs
here's your choir

and your church
I tell her
now it's' truth

not a lie
I tell her
so we sing

gospel songs
clap our hands
stamp our feet

a piano
belting out
out of key

but it's fun
and we're both
together here

out of harm
and after
we'll go get

some hot chips
from Neptune's
and eat them

from a bag
on the street
gazing out

at the sky
getting dark
side by side

standing there
one more hymn
One Eye says

then we'll go
Ingrid's hand
touches mine

we're just kids
both aged 9.