Viking

HERITAGE

am paddling
in the North Sea

determined to rediscover
my Viking heritage

a hardy people, unlikely
to flinch in the face
of danger
or pain

whilst I
find myself
forced to withdraw

return to dry land
almost instantly

avoid the visceral agony
unbearable suffering
of a frozen toe

when a Viking
turns the
other cheek

it’s to show you
the humongous scar
where the spear
went through

and let it not be said
that Vikings lack forgiveness
many a crazed Viking
has stayed
his hand somewhat
dealing out death
with much softer blows

lacking a poetic culture that
would civilized certainly
and thus unable
to write
their side of
the story

I therefore on their
behalf appoint myself their
spokesman to the
rest of us
ordinary, somewhat
shocked and
non-comprehending members
of our species

since I am no Viking, or
by my reckoning, as
much as half
clearly isn’t

THIS VIKING THING

this Viking thing
brothers in the shield wall
standing together

brothers
fighting for supremacy
amongst themselves

shield wall
against shield wall

hard to
wrap my head around
the bravery, cruelty
of these people

flows
through my blood
and yet
I understand it not

THE OARS DIP

the oars dip into
the water
pushing the boat
down the fjord

such are the propulsion
means of history

something stirred, stirring
here that may
in the deep image of
time
come to fruition, arrive
to embrace me
and confront me

relic
revealed

the sea
itself an ossiary

untold bones down
there already

an every bone a lost
a told story

and amongst these intrepid graveyards
so much rusted metal
which once flashed terribly,
proclaiming itself
as
bright steel

my steel
I find it hard to
bring to memory

as if I could just step into
such a life
live the life of my blood
and extreme legacy

or am I
being too harsh with myself
missing something
not finding
the tell-tale, been
here all this time

I see that Ragnar axe
scything through the air
cleaving
the head off my shoulders

swinging sword of this line
piercing my belly
Ah, yes this
is it
the very
Ppain I feared

Valkyrie here
on schedule it must be said
carrying me up and off
to beloved
beerhall heaven of
forever belligerence

or
insane idea that out there
gliding in stealthily
dragonship
with my name on it

nearing my shore
me to
take
my place

the oars dip
into the water

IN VALHALLA (ALMOST)

In an anteroom
to the Halls
of Valhalla

the poets sit
drinking tea;
eating wafer biscuits

the sounds of joyous warfare
emanating from
deep within
occasionally driving them
to put pen
to parchment
write a poem

on some heroic theme
though this has not happened
for many
a century

hard to glorify
cliuster bombs
and multi-barrelled
machine guns
psi ops
and assassinations

bullets from
silenced pistols
to the back of the head

FUNCTION

the weather comes
a volcano blows

climate changes
bringing
Vikings

brutal monsters
from.the North
in my genes
in my blood

and now
the rain

has gone
insne

my only hope
it is raining like this
across the globe

every soldier
drenched to
his her skin

unable
to function

the way I sometimes wish
they were always meant to be