And the doctor gave us one bottle
Of Penicillin, and another of
Linctus. I liked the Linctus,
Stickily soothing my throat and glowing
Amber in the night-light, and how
I had to suck the spoon to get the benefit,
Being careful not to spill any on my pyjamas.
It was after being dosed,
They left me the spoon to lick, and there
Engraved on the handle, official
Moulded right into the plastic,
My name, Lilly. Spelled like I spelled it.
It was my Special Spoon.
When I got better, I kept it
In a drawer with precious things;
A plastic microscope, a
Peacock feather, and James Bond’s
Aston Martin missing the ejector-seat man.
Some years later I began to suspect
The Eli Lilly Pharmaceutical Corporation of
Didn’t send the spoon just for me.
But for quite a lot of months I was
The Boy with a Special Spoon.
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