We laughed and laughed

by Jim Miller

We laughed and laughed the whole road home,
K, D, S, J, P and me.
I was the youngest, aged ten, tucked in a corner
and told to behave, but soaking up
the crack and the laughter, and laughing.
We laughed at nothing, laughed for laughing’s sake,
ate chips and pies – ‘My God, what pies!’ –
it was K said that, and we laughed some more
and chomped the crisp crust and oozy meat
while the darkness opened to let the van through.
A half-hour moment in six lives.
K died on his ship in the Red Sea heat,
D fell over a quay in the dark,
J wrestled a croft towards a stroke.
S stayed childless. As for P, I lost track.
And me? I’m still chasing 
my mysterious end, remembering
the half-hour moment and the laughter.