Reading:
Wakeup call Gazing at the ceiling In an Italian B and B I try to steer my thoughts Away from England, stricken with its Plague of loathing and incomprehension. Hypocrites and scoundrels run the show By stirring interracial tension. Politics here’s no better of course And in Sicily the Mafia’s a curse Though it hasn’t done us any harm. But people have great charm, Ever ready with a smile, Especially when you Try to speak your Few words in their language. Not so my countrymen. Veiled contempt their image Of anyone who shows Up using funny English. ‘Ere Alphonso!’ The ceiling fades. I doze. My mobile blurts out an alarm To interrupt our last caress Before we rise for cappuccinos.
