Karma

If I were back in Gdańsk, I wouldn’t be friends

With a new girl either.

If I still had Magdalena

To copy homework from

And sit with at lunch,

I'd ignore a new girl too,

Like we snubbed Alexsandra who stood

Far enough away

To be discreet.

Close enough to be invited.

We just ignored her.

We played tennis, pretended not to notice

She was holding a racket and

Wearing shorts with pockets.

Why did we do that?

But we weren’t mean to her.

We didn’t whisper and laugh,

Avoid touching her in case we caught something.

We simply ignored her.

Source: The Weight of Water (Bloomsbury Publishing Plc., 2013)