An Incident with a Bat in the Night-Time



A bat just appeared in the dining room
as I lay there one night thinking of you.
It flew around, encircling the gloom
and I asked my mother what to do.

She said to get the window open
but I remember Bob’s son’s Christening -
we couldn’t open the window then -
unscrew the bolt that needs unfastening.

So my mother got my other brother down,
told me that I was always bad news -
and my brother took up pliers, to get undone
the too-tightly fastened up screws.

The bat meanwhile flew around
and around, encircling the stale air,
frightening us down on the ground -
and the way it just happened to appear!

It could’ve got down the chimney I suppose,
but it’s not the only possibility.
Bats don’t spontaneously self-organise
like a Strange Attractor from Chaos Theory

but from where it came I do not know
and think of the woods where once I stood
being good and how plastic can grow,
and all that light, evening jazz from childhood…

my bro got the window open with pliers,
even though bats are not dangerous,
because as much as bats are not liars,
we still don’t want one living with us!

We propped the window ajar and I
took my laptop, Vape pen, earphones
and vacated the room, where I used to lie
dreaming of you, here at Cumpstones.

It’s still flying around in there, has not
found its way out of the window so
I’ll have to sleep in the attic, like a bat,
for there were many in the locked attic long ago…

I’d say if the house where the Plough aligns
is cursed then it affects everyone in turn,
but that would be boring, just lines
to elongate this little, midnight yarn.



When there were many in the locked attic,
they escaped through a tiny, little hole
when dad (who slept through radio static)
installed central heating, and even soul.

Now we must wait for this little bat
to be free too, to be out there in the Night,
and it might take a little while longer yet
because of course a bat is devoid of sight!

John F.B. Tucker

If you have any thoughts about this poem,  John F.B. Tucker would be pleased to hear them