Month: April 2016

Morning song

Soft, stilldark early morning

birds’ small, individual rounds

chirping, tweeting, calling

create a wall of nature-sound

The trams surging up Schaffhauserstrasse

juddering scrape, metal wheels on rails

a sibilant symphony: electric power

near-majestic, benign strength prevails

Church bells bong quarterly

soundwaves hanging in the air

on the hour a vortex: echo-vibration, stereolocation

you almost see it shimmering there

The planes: further away, their churn

high-up, unmistakable

as toward tarmac or clouds they kern

ripping the sky, rippling by

My baby lets out a cry: 5am

down the hall in his room

he snuffles, goes quiet again

I don’t get up… but soon

Traffic noise, a distant soundtrack

underpins cities like cement

no one drives up our street yet

Still: the neverending improvement

The soft crunch of my duvet

as I stretch my legs in the warm bed

can’t sleep now should I choose it

I think about Sydney instead

I’m doing National/Global Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo / GloPoWriMo) – write one poem, per day throughout April. Today’s prompt/challenge was to write a poem in which you closely describe an object or place, and then end with a much more abstract line that doesn’t seemingly have anything to do with that object or place, but which, of course, really does.

Kids I know

Ava, Aria, Annie, Austin, Annabel, Amelia, Alice, Adrien, Arthur, Alexander, Alessandro, Ambrose, Argento

Eva Eve, Ena, Effie, Eliza, Elliot, Elliott, Elias, Eden, Eliana

Isaac, Indira, Isabelle, Indiana, Isla

Otto, Olivia, Oliver, Oscar

Quinn

Milla, Mila, Millie, Mio, Mia, Mira, Max, Molly, Matilda, Matthew, Michael, Magnus, Madeline, Miriam, Melody, Maible

Felix, Harvey, Hope

Tara, Thandi, Thomas, Tias, Theo

Gabriel, Gabrielle, Genivieve, Giselle, Georgie

Donovan, Daphne, Dusty, Dino

Lia, Lara, Leo, Leonie, Leonard, Lily, Lucinda, Luke, LJ

Percy, Peter, Priya

Cleo, Chloe, Calliope, Constance, Caolan, Carter

Ruben, Ruby, Rhoswen, Rory, Raphael

Kaspar

Sylvester, Simon, Sebastian, Sadie, Sas

Wolfe, Will, Vivienne

Jan, Juno, Joe, Beatrix, Bo

Zoe

I’m doing National/Global Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo / GloPoWriMo) – write one poem, per day throughout April. Today’s prompt/challenge was to write a “book spine” poem, which involves taking a look at your bookshelves, and writing down titles in order (or rearranging the titles) to create a poem. I did a slightly different take (and sorry if I forgot anyone!). Might try the book spine poem at some point though.

Hairy McClairey

This summer I could grow my hair

Shaggy pits, fuzzy pins and spider-legs down there

Show the kids what a real woman looks like

But the idea fills me with fright

Because of so many cultural tunes

And tho I wish myself immune,

There’s all this baggage in body follicles

Where smooth implies wherewithal

To deal with life: as woman and mother dear

While hairy says I’M NOT COPING, I fear

It shouldn’t be such a big deal

Yet, to me, the struggle is real

And I wish I was braver, to ditch the shaver…

Shallow, vain or just being ‘normal’?

Ugh! Even writing all this feels awful.

I’m doing National/Global Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo / GloPoWriMo) – write one poem, per day throughout April. Today’s prompt/challenge was to write a poem that includes a line you’re afraid to write. I’m not sure there’s one line here but the subject matter is something I’ve often wanted to write about but have felt uncomfortable with, so I guess I’m facing that fear! Not my best poem but perhaps a good challenge nonetheless.

Gardenia four ways

‘Gardenia,’ she sighed

With such pleasurable relish

That we bought the perfume she described.

I still wear it 10 years on

Gardenia in the cool shade of morning

On my grandmother’s high verandah

Planes shimmering by in the hot blue sky

that lovely scent, mingling with the frangipani below

I spy the handsome dark-green leaves and white flowers

In unromantic IKEA

That smell reminds me of my nana

Me too – of mine

We got home and she’d sent a letter

Describing a spider in the garden to her great-grandson

Exactly the sort of story he loves

And the fragrance of gardenia on our tiny terrasse

I’m doing National/Global Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo / GloPoWriMo) – write one poem, per day throughout April. Today’s prompt/challenge was to write a flower poem.

Ballet

Once again I’ve started dancing

She says ballet’s good for the soul

The muscles slowly remember

But there’s no time to remember

spirits past, future or present while dancing

Full concentration! Maximum participation! Ignore the soul!

But perhaps my soul

does remember

Even while body and mind focus on dancing

Surely the soul must always remember dancing?

I’m giving National/Global Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo / GloPoWriMo) a go – write one poem, per day throughout April. Today’s prompt/challenge was to write a tritina. A tritina involves three, three-line stanzas, and a final concluding line. Three “end words” are used to conclude the lines of each stanza, in a set pattern of ABC, CAB, BCA, and all three end words appear in the final line. This was a good challenge! 🙂

Food for flight

Snails and worms abound today
Spring rain has brought them out to play
If I were a bird I’d find
The seasonal menu just divine

I’m giving National/Global Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo / GloPoWriMo) a go – write one poem, per day throughout April. Today’s prompt/challenge was to write about food.

Alison

She has died
A spot of life and suburban lustre
In the periphery of my childhood

Nailpolish, cigarettes, lipstick, candles
Her small orange Meteor
That sat like a full stop at the end of our street

Her Esoteric book shop. Crystals and tapestry
Jewel colours and sunbursts. Was there macramé too?
It was the 80s

Millie the friendly white Labrador
The hot tub
A plush golden-brown corner lounge

Her bedroom, slightly exotic and the smell
of perfume, makeup, incense, cigarettes (she quit eventually, I think)
And champagne

Sharing a glass of wine with mum
At the end of the day
Now I know how lovely that is
To have a friend
Just down the road
Who’ll chat with you as the kids entertain themselves

Kindness
“She always said she could tell it was me at the door because of the way I knocked with the door knocker which made me feel strangely special”
says James

She once showed us the Godlight
shining through clouds above the ocean – not religious, but holy
I always call it that when I see it now

The holiday houses where we were welcome
Never too neat. Sand underfoot
Just perfect. Goodbye x

Kleidung

Ich habe meine Kleidung vertauscht

Es hat mir etwas traurig gemacht

So viele Kleidung, so viele Jahren alt

Und auch neu

Denn ist es Frühling

Ich bin krank mit ihnen

Sind sie krank mit mir?

I’m giving National/Global Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo / GloPoWriMo) a go – write one poem, per day throughout April. Today’s prompt didn’t work for me so I thought I’d try writing a poem in German because, fuck it.

Join the club

Emily Dickinson. Credit: Amherst College Library

Frank O’Hara 1965 by Mario Schifano

I’m thinking about

putting up posters saying

Write More Poetry!

And getting T-shirts printed

with pictures of Emily Dickinson and Frank O’Hara

Hers would be white, of course.

I’m giving National/Global Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo / GloPoWriMo) a go – write one poem, per day throughout April. Today’s prompt/challenge was to write a fan letter to a celebrity, alive or dead.

Teeth: a family portrait

The new one’s teeth are new

Only seven have come through

His little cheeks so red today

I think another’s on its way

The big one’s choppers have no caries

But soon he’ll lose them all to fairies

I’ll be sad to see them go

He’s growing up so fast, you know

My fangs have recently been cleaned

The nurse was brutal and it seemed

far too painful – I was sore

So now I brush better than before

Himself’s pearlies gleam — no worries

Despite the years and years of durries.

Since it’s passed by DNA

I hope the boys’ genes went his way

There’s something so lovely about mouths

And the chunks of calcium in ours

might not look like Hollywood

Yet the smiles are very good

I’m giving National/Global Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo / GloPoWriMo) a go – write one poem, per day throughout April. Today’s prompt/challenge was to do a family portrait in poetry. I wanted to write about teeth anyway so it seemed to fit nicely.

clairevetica

poems, prose and pathways