Monday, June 16, 2014

Tuesday Poem - Two Poems by Claire Gaskin




sandstone shelter

in the language of slammed doors
the loudest slam means acceptance

his palm reminds me of rain puddling
in the plastic chairs behind the flats

I hear the screeching brakes
of a swan etched on a mirror

rank betrayal with the metronome

what holds us together lasts longer than we do

I put my hands into the silences of my pockets




yes

you don't slam the door until I'm two flights down
please find a reason not to self-destruct
my knees are crumbling like sandstone churches

I'm cleaning our house of horizons
the pain doesn't forget my body
I don't fear death, yes invented the wheel



What a strange emotional trip Claire Gaskin's new book 'Paperweight'
(Hunter Publishers) is. I read the whole book in a sitting and it had
such an odd effect on me. I zoned out, as I paid the closest attention.
It was trippy. How does she do that!!??

https://www.penguin.com.au/products/9780987580214/paperweight

2 comments:

  1. I really like the way you've posted these two poems together. They DO sink in as one, and yet... they are each so distinct, too. And I also love the way yes is embodied in the second poem. That's ingenious.

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  2. I hear the screeching brakes
    of a swan etched on a mirror
    That's a marvellous image...
    Her writing is very original. I can see why you felt trippy...it's all those unusual ways of looking at things .....:-)Thanks for sharing these.

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