when my wife's boyfriend
came to live with us
he sat at the dinner table, but didn't eat
found it necessary to interrupt our conversations
with lots of bad jokes, clumsy comments
- it was impossible to ignore him

when my wife's boyfriend
came to live with us
family outings became awkward
there was not enough room in the car for us all
and we could not agree where we should go
so we drove around, going nowhere in particular

when my wife's boyfriend
came to live with us
I asked him to keep out of my way
so he took to hiding in cupboards, behind doors
- but just as it seemed I might forget him
he would leap from the dark like a phantom, and punch me in the face