In the dark plashing the light glinting the weeds seething there is a red and white and bold sleek beast. Her fins drape behind saucy defiant frippery against the basic rhythms and dark ripples. She darts and sprints and glides and will not be told of the perils that surround her. She will not hear [...]
Roll up, roll up! (Assemble neatly, please.) The grey circus has come to town! With its towering silver and iron tents, Its elephants and solitary, impotent clown. The children bustle around and watch, Gossiping, as the tents are erected, They go home with their heads full of grey dreams, Their lives and hopes permanently effected. [...]
The glow of orange cat In a square of pallid winter sun On greycreambrown carpet. A hot desert-red comma In the square of watery light Plump plush ember. My father picks her up And she stretches: A long, blazing torch. She leans against his cheek And purring guides him Along the dark hallway.
I. Ached and slain, beached in bed, the morning tames the violent poison in my veins. II. Agonised orgy of reproach, reprimand, shame: Oh God! the night’s free rein! III. Rusted, crusted, cursed, worse. Too much for any one voice— myheadearsmouthstomach symphony of sickness. IV. The angel of the house Brings a plate; oil salt [...]
Crumbled music staves carpet the room Where, mid practice, they were exiled The rustle of this curious autumn alerts The inmate to any entrants. The onion layers of the bed Show the soft-limbed form Sleeping among shed wrappers Of downy and flannelette peels. She dreams in pastels Inexperienced assumptions About how it will be.
Coil, grapevine, and yield. Bunched baubles of wine beads, Aching under summer weight, Flat, hard, nanny parasol leaves, Protect the purple harvest. Yield, grapevine, and root. The first freshness from frost Alerts: the leaves relax, Sudden gold and scarlet joy, Celebrate the coming rest. Root, grapevine, and twist. Sleeping now, and deeply planted, Wrist-thick tendrils [...]
a lengthy quiet and then the crescendo as friends open the door, in twos threes four. stereo sounds give way to the symphony of happy fizzing friendwords. open the wine and pour mismatched glasses laughter and news sparkle in the air steaming spiced bowls line the table, eager spoons and forks flash in the lamplight [...]
Look up when you walk outside Look up and see the clouds. Look down when you walk the city See the footsteps of the crowds. See the clouds that pour across the world And above us churn and foam. See the thousand, perpetual, hustling feet That beneath us march and roam. Take notice of the [...]
I have so many pencils: surely I can write. I keep them manufacturer-sharp, But the writer’s block holds tight. I have the perfect spot: In the armchair by the table, At the coffee shop down the street, But my muse is still unstable. I gave up using the computer: (because where’s the soul in that?) [...]
I took the lid off my new pen And asked it, ”What will I regret?” It wept inky tears across my page: ”Let me tell you about neglect.” ”You will hate the days that you let slide, That dissolved into dusk without a thought; You will hate the moments you tried to ignore, As though [...]
