I was feeling melancholic
But it was Sunday afternoon
And Sundays seemed to bring about the most emotion
Especially lately
Southend in summer
And everything was out
Everywhere
Smells of fish, chips, and ice cream
Continual screams drifted up
From the amusement park rides
Some Sundays I made my way
To the Royal Hotel bar
A pint helped to dilute the gloom
Into something I could trust more
Sometimes the one pint turned into two
Making Sunday more acceptable
Like every Sunday afternoon
A singer sat in the corner
And played to the handful of people
I sat by the window
And looked out at the wide gaping mouth of the Thames
Seagulls drifted overhead
My thoughts drifted back to the last two days
And this strange maze we walk through
That we call life
All these bodies walking past
Showing all this skin
Much of it like leather
The singer played out a rendition of
Losing my Religion
As drugged up fellow amused himself across the street
And the roller coaster screams continued to waft up
All these choices
All these roads
All these possible outcomes
Sometimes all we can do
Is sit by a window with a pint
And look back
And wonder how differently it might have looked
Or what on earth is next
As we cast the dice
And play the hand in front of us
While infinite paths lie ahead
And the world remains indifferent
As the big ferris wheel turns
Like the sun that keeps coming around
As the ship sails by
Only to return
As the tide recedes slowly
Only to be back tomorrow
As the seagulls circle
It was after 6pm
Yazoo’s Only You was being bastardised
I needed a second pint
Notes from the Narrow Lanes 