Sprawled
on this beach before the ocean of London:
A
place undecided, vague and ill-defined
Which
is washed by London,
Advancing
and retreating out of Surrey
I
cling here lonely, alone
Toe-poking
the ocean which will be my home.
I
explore library, church and Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
And
finding nothing resembling a friend
I
search further into the belly of London
Probing
addresses in Tufnel Park and Parsons Green
Which
bring conversation but no community:
No
family with which to populate my new home
I
still can find no sea legs,
No
gills with which to breathe the city's air
I
resort to sad embraces with foreign women,
Fleeting
excursions to Brixton with friends from out of town
And
the brief magic of cinema.
For
I have not yet learnt to inhabit the fluid stage of London.