My requirements officer?
I have just one humble request
I beg you on my knees
Washed up by sea
In the wake of
Unspeakable violence
Please, please can you
Leave the light on?
In those first few minutes
As I come to consciousness
Fresh from dream state
Wave crash
Beached wreck
I gasp for breath
Air wet with death
I’m back there in the ocean
In that moment
Now I’m sinking &
I can’t see her
Please, please can you
Leave the light on?
I wake with a start
In a sweat
The strength of tide
In soaking bed
My head is ringing
With sound of screaming
And whispered prayers
To keep us afloat
But they were unanswered
The night I fled
With my baby
On a blue rubber boat
My throat burns like the sea
Which reminds me
When you feed me
Please can I have no salt?
And please, please can you
Leave the light on?
I am not a silent poet 