I watched the food mixer like a hawk today.
It was exchanging slyness with the toaster, I swear
And … was that a wink, flashed at the rice cooker?
I lingered in the kitchen for hours, keeping an eye,
Pretending to sort tins, vaguely dusting shelves
With a homely red checked teatowel - the only safe thing in there.
I daredn’t make tea. That would mean turning the kettle on
And giving it a voice, turning on its red eye.
I swigged lemonade from a bottle with little fizz, but no danger.
At five minutes to midnight, my shoulders breathed again
And I risked the microwave to heat up milk.
When it beeped, my mouth went like dust. I turned slowly
But it was just saying, ‘Your milk is ready.’ Friendly, like. Benign,
I think.
© Fran Hill
The date 21 April 2011 has been prophesied in the Terminator series as Judgement Day
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Fran lives in the West Midlands (UK). She teaches English in a local secondary school, writes, performs, blogs, tweets and tries to resist chocolate. www.ilurveenglish.blogspot.com
