#197 Kevin Brophy 'Bread'

#197 Bread

When you bake a loaf of bread

open a window for the street

to enjoy its baking smells,

take half of it to your neighbour,

and sit outside on your doorstep

to eat your own slices of it

so that the birds will have the crumbs,

go slow with linseed and pumpkin

seeds on your lips and tongue

each time you return to it,

acquaint it further with butter,

salt, jams and honeyed avocado,

talk with your mouth full of it

of the wonders that fill this world,

enjoy the way your loaf of bread ages,

losing its lightness and going brittle

until that last crusted heel of it

remains, waiting for your jaws

to take it on

for this loaf only has its life

for as long as you savour it

remembering all bread must be loved

before one loaf can be baked.