the drunk

The drunk

A thick plastic curtain of the type used in warehouses he could not see through
to other than shadowy figures moving around, he knew he saw a past that
no longer belonged to him.
He sat on the edge of his unmade bed, drinking warm beer, when a sharp knock
 on the door of his flat
 it was the landlord looking at him with contempt, saying he must pay the rent tomorrow or else!
Despair sizzled through his body needed a strong drink one mixed vodka and cold coffee,
while asking himself how it had come to this losing his job because he had been
 “outspoken”, told his boss to fuck off
Drinking the rest of the beer, he decided to take the bus to the farm he once lived
 as a child; he had been happy there to trace his life from there
He got off the bus in a small town near the farm. needing a drink, but it must have been early
 the cafe had no ale he had a coffee which he mixed with vodka; when that
was seen, they told him to leave
He bought a tin of cola and sat in a park drinking, thinking of this unfriendly town full of Jesus
people with no sense of humour
He took a taxi to the farm, now a gated community
 the river was gone, and the wooden bridge
across it too, where he used to sit under and see tiny fishes nibble at his toes- gone, fucking gone.
A man came and told him it was private property and looked like a burly guard on duty
Down the main road where they were widening the road, a workers’ shed
he got in a found cold coffee and mixed it with vodka
he must have lost the sense of time
 all of a sudden, it was morning the workers were coming.
He got a bus home and walked to his flat the landlord said his mother had paid the rent
 and taken my belongings; she wanted to see him
At her flat sat many people, even the boss who had fired him and thought this assault was called
intervention; telling him his problem was booze, he was a good guy when sober
 They left in time for him to go to the nearest café for a few more beers before closing time.
The next day, he showered and dressed in clean clothes
 He went to a meeting where people appeared feverishly happy and laughing out loud.