Tuesday Poem

I dreamt I was feeling vertigo on the stairs

a candle in a jar
it is on the table with the intake of breath
water beads like sounds before meanings

the words do nothing for you, what have you done for them
I can see the future clearly; up close I need my glasses
a flame in a jar, me in your eyes

inevitability with its nose to a false tomorrow
with all your hunger you can start completely new
water beads on the glass

the dirty moon through the window
it is harder to get back the withheld
two of me in your eyes that see one

broken bits of graffitu
parakeets dart from backyard wall to gum
words bead like water before falling

we leave our families, communities, look for a book club
a clean house does not mean you are not going to die
a flame away from the wind
water beads like meanings

by Claire Gaskin, Paperweight, Hunter Publishers, 2013.

Paperweight is Gaskin's third collection of poetry and the poems in this collection continue to play with Gaskin's preoccupation with line and image. There's a wry humour at work, too, which I love and a real strength in Gaskin's understanding of our subconscious yearnings. Hot off the press - I attended the book launch less than three weeks ago. Buy one for your own Christmas present, I say.

This poem is reproduced here with permission from the author.

While you're contemplating poetry, wander over to the Tuesday Poem hub and read some other fine poems. The guest edited poem is not yet up, but other poems are rapidly appearing on the sidebar.