Introducing a new series of poems by Julian Matthews. Julian is a writer and Pushcart-nominated poet published in The American Journal of Poetry, Autumn Sky Poetry Daily, Borderless Journal, Beltway Poetry Quarterly, Dream Catcher Magazine, Live Encounters Magazine, Lothlorien Poetry Journal and The New Verse News, among others. He is a mixed-race minority from Malaysia and lived in Ipoh for seven years. Currently based in Petaling Jaya, he is a media trainer and consultant for senior management of multinationals on Effective Media Relations, Social Media and Crisis Communications. He was formerly a journalist with The Star and Nikkei Business Publications Inc
Link: https://linktr.ee/julianmatthews
By Julian Matthews
The truth is wobbly.
Like trifle, panna cotta or mousse.
You mean like the jelly grandma makes?
Yes, like the jelly grandma makes.
Are you saying grandma is a liar?
No grandma never lies.
In fact, that’s her most endearing trait.
That – and her ability to make the best trifle.
And chocolate cakes and pineapple tarts and curry puffs!
Yes, all those too.
So what do you mean when you say the truth is wobbly, grandpa?
Just like a dessert, truth at first can taste good
but later you find out it’s not so good.
Like when you have too much sweet stuff and wanna puke?
Sort of.
More like when you have a cake or cookie that you think should
be sweet but turns out it’s rather tasteless, even bitter.
Like sour candy or pop rocks?
Yes, the truth can be too much sometimes and explode in your mouth, I suppose.
So you hold back, bend it a little so as not to hurt others.
Like when grandma thought you were me once, and you just played along
because she had Alzee-mers.
Yes, sometimes, all people need is a little ear candy, not the bitterness of sour candy.
There’s candy for ears?
Yes, but not the edible kind.
I miss grandma.
I miss grandma, too.
All this talk of food is making me hungry, grandpa.
Can we go get ice-cream?
Yes. Let’s.
First published in the literary magazine Live Encounters, Poetry and Writing, 15th Anniversary, Vol 1, Nov-Dec 2024, based in Bali, Indonesia.
