POEM AS PREDATOR
poem as predator
poem as prey
evolution in the
lines as they
spark, splash
their way
past you
guppies, celopods, great
whites
barracuda
give praise
say your prayers
make a vow
take a bow
publish a statement
pen a declaration
never
in the light of
whatever truth takes your fancy
never to let
them take you
make you
fudge; or fold
BY DESIGN
everything
twitches, shudders,
revolves,
devolves
evolves
shades into
melds
dissolves
splits, pulls tricks,
goes longitudinal, lateral.
becomes hybrid
finds
a solution
runs parallel
chases, takes tracking shot,
edits, splices.,
dices
chases, runs
away from
enters into, escapes
out of
connives, convinced,
consumes
is consumed by
darkens,
enlightens
extends
goes out on a limb
shifts and returns back to
resolves then rescinds
enhances, romances,
shadows, throws
shade upon
thinks better worlds, best
world
worst life we
can imagine
worst reality, surreal actuality,
horror show entirely
ones we
are born into
die in
die from
are enshrined in
remain remembered
unless
resurrected, reincarnated,
renewed, reinvented
simply born again
all things
designed and created unless
worked it
all out themselves
(what works
best
for them)
generating their very being
out of something
rather than
nothing
why is there something
rather than nothing?
why
is there anything
when
nothing is central, primal,
presupposes
logically, mathematically
essential
look at yourself
plain as day you
just appeared out of nowhere
nothing
so
much the deeper
beyond
all conjecture
wiser
than
we could ever fathom
from the very beginning
before
the beginning by
inescapable design
such a grip on the plan
SALVATION
maybe I might
have forgotten myself
at that moment
of chaos and crisis
have forgotten to tell you
you have
become goddess
the most
beautiful thing
in the Universe
divine object of
the adulation of the stars
beloved dream of
all of us
self included
who
have known you
loved you
longed for you, wanted you
worshipped you
from this intimate near
or
as with me
so deeply
from afar
that chaos, that crisis
stuff of supernova
of exploding galaxies
put
to one side
alien to
the quiet order and
system
and
death by
intensity
of
which I
for the peace that is
light and
sort of
respite
guess I should write
being perhaps
some salvation
QUITE
it doesn’t matter
if you can’t
do your taxes
fly a plane
or even drive a car
make love to
a man
to a man
or lover non-
gender specific
none of
these things
matter
at all
left-brained, right-brained
schizophrenic, dyslexic
pro-
universal peace
or hungering for
thermonuclear war
everything will be fine
as long as you
never
attempt poetry
as is
well known, and
absolutely historically proven,
starting
to write poetry
is the universal mistake
found throughout the galaxy
incontestably quite
the biggest disaster of all
NOT WHAT IS PERCEIVED
we played chess
on acid
which gave the whole game
a kind of
snakes
and ladders effect
then went
to write our
entrance exams
hard to do
algebra
when all you can hear
is the sound of a mellatron
and bagpipes
in your head
but nevertheless prevailed
did my level
best
spirit level best
left brain right brain
quantum
entanglement at
the heart
of everything
every
single breath
both in terms of the
horizontal and
the vertical dimensions
every shape
and size, every configuration
my eyes
see
my fingers touch
and you in your beauty
naked before me
at the core of love
meaning (and future) of our
stunning species
having recently discovered
all that is out there
if anything is
out there
is not what is perceived
HAVING HANNIBAL FOR BREAKFAST
tell me Dr Lecter
how many census takers
have you yourself tested
and is
their bureaucratic impudence
any guide to flavour
this I ask
as one of your greatest
admirers
who
would have felt
so blessed
to have just a smidgen,
an ounce
of your visceral
eloquence
not to speak of
your tactical acumen
or ease with
which you
freely segue
from devious thought
to diabolical strategy
but
let that all rest
we are both here
for breakfast, to enjoy
ourselves
try
this Jamaican cuisine
you were so thoughtful
to bring
jerk Dr Chilton
lots of prize juicy
essential and
inessential
parts
in a doggy bag
YET ANOTHER
wrote a poem
crashed and burned
nice and crispy
in my coffin
no big deal
this grandest of exits
doesn’t make me
a rockstar
or anything
just another wannabe
following that script
so faithfully followed
right now
you might think it
an algorithm
that old self-destructive
yearning
for excess
yet another convert
to the great
Arthur
Rimbaud paradigm
YOUMANITY
youmanity
meemanity
this is written
in adoring
praise
of meemanity
youmanity
at its apex
when
distant, exclusive,
self-centred
and alone
DE FACTO
the arm and a leg
debt retrieval people
(who might
already
be hallmarked
for, or even be
in the midst of the process
of being
replaced
my machines)
have stamped me on my forehead
laser-branded my file
“terminal case”
and here I am
under cover
trying to slip through
every electric fence by
way of
some dark carnival
commodified down to
my body parts as
sole exchangeable assets
fear
being cannibalised by
seemingly civilized means
but when
the bandsaw hits my bone
de facto, I am
going to scream no matter
how you
spin the semantics
the blood on
your apron
calculator on
your desk unless
chipped into your head
BELONG
Sufi Mufti
Grand Wazoo
feels like abracadabra
like verbal algebra
tuneful vowels
rolling
off my tongue
Shia Shia
Sunni Wahabi
and you Omar Khayyam
and disciples of Rumi
out in the desert
looking for rose
of beauty
woman
whose every
move a poem
every word
divine bliss
something mystical about
these Persian angels
something that drives the soul
to write
its love on sand
and me
in Heaven as I spell
out the logic
of this grammar in
full
linguistic mouthful
after mouthful
searching as I speak
for place to
belong to
if you
would have me belong
poems 2 die for