So, This Happened This Morning

I bought a bagel 

and a banana at the 

train station on my 

way to work. As I 

walked on the platform

the banana fell out of 

my pocket. A security 

guard saw it happen, 

picked it up and called 

to me. As I took it from 

him I said “Good thing 

nobody slipped on it!” 

The guard laughed 

heartily. It was the 

greatest moment 

of my life.

James Hawes is a poet and filmmaker living in Montreal. He has published three chapbooks, the latest under an overpass, a fox (Turret House Press), was shortlisted for the Nelson Ball Prize in 2023. His first full length collection Breakfast With a Heron (Mansfield, 2019) was shortlisted for the 2020 ReLit Award. He is the founder and publisher of Turret House Press, a micro-press dedicated to publishing new and experimental poetry from emerging and established authors (turrethousepress.ca).