Silent Disco

'Can you turn the music down'
the man next to me on the train says
then nudges me 'Can you turn the music down.'
I flip off my headphones and say
'I am on my way to a funeral'

I say 'I am about to have an operation'
I tell him that when I was born I was deaf
never heard my mum say my name
and then one day in a service station cafe

my ears suddenly popped like Champagne corks
and for the first time I was able to hear my friends laughter
the hiss of an espresso machine
the sound of a man sweeping.

Before I put my headphones back on
I nudge the man and say
'I love the sound of drum and bass,
especially when people dismiss it as being just noise.'