On Time
His head’s a secret train-set in the attic:
quiet, straightforward, always summer.
The cattle in their fields of baize,
the postman on his bike,
the green sponge trees
by the papier-mâché tunnel, the children
forever waving their stiff handkerchiefs
at the trains that are always on time.
Credit
Copyright © 2022 by Robin Robertson. Originally published in Poem-a-Day on April 4, 2022, by the Academy of American Poets.
About this Poem
“Friends of mine have been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia, so this is for them.”
—Robin Robertson
Author
Robin Robertson
Robin Robertson is the author of The Long Take (Alfred A. Knopf, 2018).
Date Published
04/04/2022