He’s on the sofa,
straight-backed with a chest built
from exercise and soft drinks,
a paper Christmas cracker hat on his head.
He realises he forgot to tell us
his wife is pregnant, but we could tell
he’s preparing to become a father, to age,
to get ready to be one of two people
in a house who needs to have all the answers
to stuff he ultimately doesn’t care about
when he asked his weekend’s host,
Can you overcook a chutney?

Carl Burkitt 2023