Two Poems

mummy always said
him too bright
but he
paw paw

John John

di man dem called him cosmo
was all the things
a man was supposed to be

to look like
skin line fade
goatee
a deep bluesy laugh clung to his ribs
coral to the ocean floor
messages for the ancestors in a bottle
rum prophecies by the dozens

the tan leather trench coat
spread collar
high water pants
corduroy linen and calico fabrics
and all the other fly shit he wore
for nights on the town
silver pinkie ring rocked steady
the walk that had an answer for every question
that knew y is a crooked letter with a long tail
brawling hands
softened upon the crown of my head
before stepping out the door
or selecting big tune 45s with a good story
for a late night par with friends

man and woman alike
finding light
in the smoky silhouette of his smile
and the riddim and rhyme
of his raatid blouse and skirt exultations
every body leaning in close
ever ready to share the healing of the nation
sandalwood and orange blossom on the nose
the Dennis Brown chunes
the big chat
the key card dominoes

a one man movable feast
his voice conjured saints and sinners

though mummy always said
he had more tongue than taste

but his was the sweetest sound
its echo is all that’s left of him
other than the lines on my face

my silence came cheap
the propaganda of a patty and cocoa bread
with pineapple soda
is all it took for me to look the other way
to look at this other woman
to watch her watching me
watch my father watching me
turn my mother’s cheek
and decide whose son I was going to be