I’m expecting a pay rise at my job
or at least a free massage at lunch
because I just scored a backwards,
overhead goal at volleyball.

I might try walking on water later.
Today could be the day I write the perfect poem.
You should see the size of my nephew’s eyes
because I just scored a backwards,
overhead goal at volleyball.

The all inclusive buffet will cheer me tonight.
Profiteroles will thank me for choosing them
and the sundried tomatoes will blush, no doubt,
because I just scored a backwards,
overhead goal at volleyball.

The keeper was six-years-old, give or take.
Old enough to brush his own teeth
and dust himself down from lifelong humiliation
because I just scored a backwards,
overhead goal at volleyball.

Carl Burkitt 2026