Mental Escape [rev] Poem by Margaret Alice Second

A heat wave & Scorpio beside himself I dared
hang curtains to screen the sun’s reflection on
new backyard paving; Scorpio blissfully made
it into a concrete desert by ‘mirroring’ its heat
reflection 100%; heat hurts my head, I need a
shell to hide from radiation - & thus Scorpio’s
elated while I felt nauseous and had to take
two of all available painkillers

Ringing ears, heart sore after Scorpio’s blasé
and involuntary attack, tonight I find that bright
lights & noise aggressively invade the senses
leaving my mind unfocused & I fear backyard
radiation changing kitchen into an oven & no
kind shade left as all trees’ve been removed
leaving house exposed in the unusual heat; a
cool grass-covered lapa’s available if dancing

Heatwaves miraged in the burnt backyard can
be crossed wearing two hats - bit like Mustrum
Ridcully’s custom-designed wizard-hat - & this
idea improves my mood, the links with Pratchett
characters uplift consciousness making it okay
to dive into Nodame’s lovely Cantabile music on
my laptop, free at last - perfect mental escape…