Ode To Sam Howe Sitting On The Back of a Tarantula Thinking About Jam

My manager, Sam Howe, spends a lot of time pressuring me to write about her - in my journal, in my stories, poems, all of it. So, one day, while at work, I scribbled down this title with the image of a young girl - much like Mary from 'The Secret Garden' - sitting on the back of a tarantula with her nose curled up to the sky thinking about thinking. This is what became of that: 

It began, as most things do, with an idea

and transported onto paper – through paper and ink –

the idea – however small – was created.

She sat on the back of a tarantula

arms folded

head pointed to the sky

thinking about jam.

Jam on toast

jam on scones

jam on pickles and sausages

in mornings and nights.

Ponder, ponder, that’s what she did

perhaps too much

– but definitely not too less –

thinking, at first about jam

and maybe all the things in-between.

It started with an idea

however small

it was created

she sat on the back of a tarantula thinking about jam.