I’m sure I left it somewhere
Underneath the bush we planted
Sweet smell of lavender
To cover the gap in the fence
Back before I met you
In a dim-lit bar in Manchester
Dripping with adventure
Now a lifetime ago
Perhaps it’s just hidden
Down behind the sofa cushions
Huddled between the gathered dust
And your key to the Peugeot
On top of the wardrobe
Sleeping in a hatbox
Full of moth-eaten gloves
With my wedding handkerchief
Beneath the kitchen cabinets
Disguised by its companions
A wandering teaspoon and
Some pea-escapees
It’ll turn up again
You say with that
Bad-penny certitude
I have come to expect
Until then I have you
Who lie to my face
In an attempt at conviction
Of my undiscovered brilliance
Katherine Shirley 