Bradley Smiles

Bradley Smiles

Bradley spots me on the Whitefield platform.
Walks up, smiles, and asks
“What instrument is that?”

Normal people don’t just talk to strangers

Bradley doesn’t really know what a mandolin is
And comparisons don’t help
But he knows a few chords on guitar
He smiles when he tells me he can play Wonderwall

Bradley’s age doesn’t show on his face
But he tells me he’s a student at the Royal Northern
And, smiling, that he plays the drums
Proudly shows me his lanyard ID

I’ve gone quiet now
Awkward in the face of an innocence that I can’t know,
But Bradley spots a friend
He smiles when he greets her with a hug
She’s older, talks to him like a favourite schoolteacher
Asks him about his progress, his health, his family.

And when we get off at Victoria
Bradley spots me, smiles and waves a goodbye

And I wonder,
Just for a moment
If I could escape from me
And only for the length of a moment
If I could be Bradley.

 

June 2023