Sunday, September 18, 2022

QUEUED

by Annie Cowell


The queue for Queen Elizabeth II's lying-in-state is visible from space in this photo taken Sept. 16, 2022. (Image credit: Satellite image ©2022 Maxar Technologies @Maxar via Space.com.)


We feel
it is a very
British thing,
the queue.
That we 
invented it,
monopolise it,
transformed it
into art. 
We queue,
best foot
forward, wearing
stiff upper lips,
displaying 
plumes of
peacock pride.
For centuries 
we have practised; 
in war time 
ration lines, 
supermarkets, 
airports, 
Wimbledon. 
It agitates 
our sense
of fairness;
we are ready
to be tested, 
to fight 
for our 
rightful
place. 
Now, 
we have
the mother
of all 
queues.
A record 
breaker,
meandering
for miles,
flowing 
like the
Thames through 
the heart 
of London.
A pulsing
tail of 
humanity,
from Britain 
and abroad
eager to 
embrace
a marathon
of waiting
and be a part 
of history.
No agitation
here, instead
a camaraderie
of shared
experience,
of sorrow.
At last,
there is
the end.
A pause,
in which
to bow 
our heads.
Pay respects.
Duty
bound, 
it seems,
to say
farewell. 


Annie Cowell  grew up in Northern England. She is a former teacher who lives by the sea in Cyprus with her husband and rescue dogs. She is widely published in Popshot Quarterly, The Milk House, Paddler Press, and more. Her debut chapbook Birth Mote(s) is now available.