slip into quicksand
as if into a warm bath
a deliberate choice made
to sink beyond sight -
if only - peaceful deep dirt
an escape from the chaos -
no one sees me here
a darkness like a gullet
swallowed to drift to pieces
and then to nothing -
nerves no longer pain-shredded
but no kisses on soft skin -
claw back to the light
it's not - it can't be
yet somehow is
we laugh but shy, as if someone adult
might take it from us -
the moon perhaps, though she's allied
to lovers, traditionally - or some lurker,
hedged, patient, primed to spring
we both carry that fear bonewise,
running the body's rivers
seared in the deep red meat of us
how even if we get this moment that's not
but somehow is, somehow it isn't,
and won't, can't, mustn't be, or ever have been
they talk about their
journey's - gentle, enriching,
vastly fulfilling epics -
i've taken back roads
skirting bloody accidents,
animal attacks, sinkholes,
unexplained blazes
surprise meteorite strikes,
cold false dawn after false dawn,
failed and successful
rebellions, riots, warfare
open and guerilla, all
to get nowhere slow
your eyes like bruises
injuries you don't recall
which shine angry regardless
glowing like sunsets
supercharged with pollution
gorgeous, but not worth the pain
all the stars were born
to illuminate this night
draw you clean from the darkness
a liberation
amidst the scraps of our world
the light needs to kiss your skin
Where is my delight
On a misty may morning?
Cattle amble over the meadow
from the morning milking shed
Quiet in their breathy wonder
At the silver grass.
Dewdrops shimmer
On Dandelion clocks
Damp fluff no time will measure
But quicksilver-lit,
they shine like stars.
What music can I hear?
Goldfinches twinkle
lighting the walls with glitter
And a Curlew sings
Her descending song
Down to the heath
And her treasure. #poetry