Reading from The Finn´s Tale

I´m reading from my novel, The Finn´s Tale, in Helsinki on Friday, 14 September. The address is Fredrikinkatu 20 A, the reading starts at 19.00. I´m looking forward to meeting any of my blog readers who are in the area.

On a Country Road in Finland

Here´s a new poem with a Finnish theme. It´s not deadly serious, as you will see.


On a Country Road in Finland

It was after turning at the Mihari junction
and heading for the main road from Hämeenkyrö
to Ylöjärvi that the most unlikely
police car in southern Finland pulled us up.

The beat-up Volvo I was driving
had all its lights working and its doors shut
thanks to Jukka´s firm hand on the off-side rear.
Still, we looked suspect, apparently.

One officer approached my open window.
His mate stood at a distance, arms akimbo.
I had a driving licence and showed it;
I knew the registration number and told it.

He relaxed a bit and directed his torch over
my shoulder. A bale of hay sat in the hollow
where the back seat used to be,
Jukka beside it on an upturned beer crate.

Jukka didn´t make eye contact. Good
body language. The beam flicked through
the scented air. We waited in silence. `Okay,´
said the one with the light, `on your way.´