I'm in the hall on the phone
Jen's in her room watching Neighbours
Dad's in the bath whistling
Mam's on the sofa reading yesterday's paper

When suddenly the house is lit to every corner
By a stupendous burst of all-seeing light

The bolt left its cloud
Scribbled miles down
An empty page of heaven
Landed on our roof
Leapt from room to room
And vanished with a deafening boom

Diminished chord of panicked screams
A smell in the air like chlorine
Cacophony of barking dog and burglar alarm
A scorch-mark in the centrе of my trembling palm

I stand bewilderеd at the telephone hanging from the wall
Now a flower of charred and twisted beige

It was only a wrong number -
I just hung up the call
That was so close. You were so close
I almost recognized the voice