The Subject

Subject: The person or thing that is being discussed, considered or studied.


Don’t photograph me asleep on a train.
I don’t want a picture of me, mouth wide open,
posted somewhere for all to see.
Having no privacy is a pain.

And don’t be thinking it’s ok to take a shot
just because I’m outside leaning
against a wall having a fag break.
It’s not.

I know you’re not wanting me to pose or
give you a wave. You want real life, the
odd, the mundane, the candid.
Don’t get any closer

with that camera. I’m not an attention seeker.
I’m not a public figure. I don’t mind being a distant
figure, a shape in a landscape that helps complete
the picture you’re after,

but don’t attempt to preserve me, in close-up, for ever
being rushed off my feet looking exhausted
or troubled as I struggle down the street. Don’t
subject me to that.