Waiting outside the gynae-oncology ward during the Olympics
In Rio, it’s women’s beach volleyball. Beside me,
a woman is wearing a gown and white compression socks.
The athletes in Rio have tiny shorts and bikini tops.
We nod to one another. A man is glued to the women
in Rio as if interested in who wins and loses.
He’s here because I’m scared, she mutters.
We flick through our mobiles – no signal. In Rio,
bodies are lithe, feet and toes bare on the sand. Upstairs
they’re in scrubs while we stare at the match in Rio
without any understanding of the rules.
Rebecca Gethin: All the Time in the World (Cinnamon Press) and A Sprig of Rowan (Three Drops Press) were both published in 2017. An earlier collection and two novels were published by Cinnamon. She runs the Poetry School’s monthly seminars in Plymouth, has been a Hawthornden Fellow and her website is www.rebeccagethin.wordpress.com
atriumpoetry.com 