Dad – Katie Rata Gotlieb

Dad
 
He is laughing maniacally,
words twisting out of his mouth,
winding together creating utter nonsense.
His head is thrown back,
his eyes glaze over,
the car drifts, speeds, swerves.
he becomes quiet,
head tilted away from me,
staring out the window at god knows what.
I coax him towards home.
I couldn’t leave him standing in the middle of the street,
staring at the sun setting,
pink purple orange red like the words that leave his mouth.
Glimmering stars,
basking in the cold moonlight.
Unpredictable, a beautiful mess.
The shine of the streetlight make his eyes flicker for a second,
away from the dull sheen.
But they soon begin to dance and swirl,
to the rhythm of the waves,
the tilt of the earth.
And once again he is gone,
lost to me.
Skipping off in the spotlight of the moon,
leaving a trail of pink purple orange red,
colours that burn.
 

Katie Rata Gotlieb
Year 13
Otago Girls’ High