Great Gig In the Sky

Dear Mr. Waters
Don asked me to let you know that he is in hospital now
And has been diagnosed with a cancer in his sinus
He also asked me to tell everyone that he is not answering any letters
Best to you
Don's assistant, Kendel

And then I wrote to Kendel
Dear Kendel
The other night in Zagreb
At the end of the show
When I sometimes wax political
I suddenly found myself telling ten thousand Croats Don's One Road story
I had no idea if they would get it
When I got to the line "There is only one road in Yugoslavia"
They burst into loud and genuine laughter
I told them the rest of the story in brief, including Kirby's cancer, and reached the end
There is only one road

I stayed in touch with Kendel
She lived a couple of hundred yards down the road from the farm house
Somehow Don's plan for the Eagle Farm to stay in the family
Never worked out and it went on the market
Eventually, an estate sale was organised and Kendel kept me informed
It's a long drive
It was still light when we got there
So we went to the farm and sat on the porch
And chatted to a few people who were gathered there
Some ladies intent on protecting Don's legacy
Determined to at least buy his red chair
And some other important stuff
I told Kendel that if it was okay with the estate
I would like a couple of bale hooks and some baling twine from the barn
She organised that
Thank you, sweet Kendel

Tears burn my eyes, my new old friend
My bale hooks and twine arrived a few months later
With a colour photograph of Don with Kendel
They live
Hooks, twine, and pic
Slap-bang in the middle of some beautiful shelves we have on the landing
In pride of place alongside some mummified dragonflies
And old robins' eggs
Treasured
Forever catching the rays of the dying sun
At that gin rumminy time of the afternoon that I love
Well, R.I.P., Donald Hall
And now I've arrived at the bit I was looking for
The Crossroads