R A Ruadh

No rock no roll

It was spring

streams flowing in the mountains

still some snow in places

ice holding the scree solid

or so we thought

I don’t remember clearly

if I tripped on a larger rock

or caught my foot under

a shelf of frozen fragments

I fell on hands and knees

nothing solid to grab

shards of scree taking me along

classical musician doesn’t do roll

so I continued scrabbling downhill

I slid backwards

until it levelled off

sounds of rockslide behind me

falling infinitely down from where

I stopped at the edge

somehow we got to a dirt trail

my knees were wrecked

not improved by hiking down

under the influence of medicinal booze

cognac still makes my knees hurt