Gary Bradshaw

Beijing, China

GARY BRADSHAW is a Beijing-based international school educator, poet, and writer. Having spent most of his life moving from country to country, ‘place’ often features heavily in his work. He is currently working on a collection of poetry inspired by his time in China.

Poem Written: Feb 20^th 2020

VIRUS AT THE DOOR

don’t come in/don’t come close/

stay your two meters away from me/

where have you been/who did you

speak to/have you washed your

hands/your face/your eyes/is that

mask you wear a proper one/

a surgical one/when did you put it

on/did you buy it off the street/

was it wiped down/brushed off/or

sold to you with a smile/did you just

sniff/do you own a handkerchief/do

you use your elbow/where is your

family/did you travel/did they travel/

do you know anyone from that

region/anyone at all/anyone who

knows anyone/who knows anyone

from that place/are you a bat eater/

a rat eater/a dog/a squirrel/a possum

eater/did you get enough sleep/

are you run down/is there heart

disease/cancer/liver disease/angina/

psoriasis/diabetes/or love in your

family/did you eat right today/pass a

bowel motion today/put the seat

down when you flushed today/are

you a conspiracy theorists/an enemy

of the state/are you avoiding

prosecution/is this your time/is this

my time/is this the end of time/