Cooked

My roasted chicken rests,
As a war veteran four doors up
Falls down his stairs
And pops his collarbone alone.

The greens sigh steam in a sieve,
As a high school reunion
Turns into a fist fight
In the De Vere hotel beer garden.

A tabbouleh salad glistens,
And in the rain hit park nearby
A lost mandarin duckling wanders
Under an ice cream van to shelter.

Garlic roast potatoes crispen,
And a Renault Megane careers
Into a old man’s front garden,
Hissing steam across his water feature.

24 hours ago a freedom reigned,
Hope flapped like a flag,
Proud in the wind,
A sweet aroma filled the air,

Children sang made-up songs in the street,
The news stations were beacons of positivity,
The sun danced for 14 hours,
Nothing bad happened;

Then they fucked it all up.