The dragon in my skull

is breathing too hard

and making my eyesight

blur, seem distant and the claw

from the left foot is tapping out

Jazz moves in time to Beiderbecke

as the heat from its nostril

clouds over my right eye,

steam punk future,

one electronic eye patch

covered in soot and dragon grime, as Buddy Rich

smashes out hits

against my temple

the headache in perfect drum beast time.

 

The right eye,

never the same since the day

on Cooper field when

for sport an elbow connected

to a young Cooper kid

decided to connect

with my eye and cheek bone

over

and over

and over

again

until I bled,

the headache feels

like a permanent reminder,

the souvenir of that day,

as Buddy Rich gives way

to Keith Moon

for the second act

and there is still Shaun

Drover yet to come

for the exhilarating encore;

the dragon will sleep soon,

in hope that the claws retract out of my

eyes.

 

Ian D. Hall 2016