#52 Kevin Brophy 'Like a blessing'

Salt keeps the frogs away,
pepper stops the dogs
and geraniums will persuade
the snakes to keep their distance.
If you bring in a priest from Kenya,
put him in the Kimberley
and pay him forty dollars a week,
don't be surprised if he buys
a ticket to Amsterdam as soon  as he can.
Our neighbours have abandoned
their home to a troublesome spirit
and lightning surrounds the town tonight.
The moon is a fat Californian orange.
Champagne is still Champagne,
it just costs twice as much.
This country is full of chefs
running dive boats or driving taxis
and the food in the pubs is still pub food.
Lightning pings and stabs, it tears
the thin night apart like slitting silk.
The land is helpless now under the hand
of a cloud hovering over the desert, the sea
like a blessing.