I was upgraded once, on a work flight

from London to Sydney, came to experience

across half a world all the pleasures

of being pampered beyond my station.

Surprised by the scruffy state of my fellow

denizens of first, I reckoned they must

be rock stars, or people too wealthy

to worry about their appearance.

A better class of bubbly at the start.

The chef, making individual meals

was, I thought, a bit over the top.

I enjoyed it nonetheless. The bed,

when the cabin steward made it up,

was perfectly flat. A marginal

improvement on business, where you get

a good night’s sleep in any event.

I changed into the designer pyjamas

they provided, but foolishly left them

behind at the end, too callow to know

their value, but fitting in well

with the casual carelessness

of my fellow travellers.

Rohan Buettel lives in Canberra, Australia’s capital city. His haiku have been published in various Australian and international journals (including Frogpond, Cattails and The Heron’s Nest). His longer poetry most recently appears in The Elevation Review, Rappahannock Review, Penumbra Literary and Art Journal, Mortal Magazine, Red Ogre Review, Reed Magazine, Meniscus and Quadrant.