(My Father 1981)
A boulder mountain
Of compositions'
Bulk, hardbound,
Notes lined, dreams,
-Cold, volcanic ash
-Settles, disguised as
-Dust motes, black
-Changed to grey;
Fiery outbursts,
Warning shots of youth,
Some bet time,
Some stepped back,
-Women heel toed the
-Tremors, tracing from
-Line's fault to
-Cradle's side;
Stick built castle: farm;
Workers; income: time,
Freelancing,
Composing,
-Bars stop, legs block, 'Don't!'
-'This, not that way,' 'No!'
-Draw pictures,
-Mom, sisters;
Core erupts, barn door
Splinters, invective
Curls, chasm
Consuming,
-Listening, upstairs,
-Watching across the
-Table, when
-Ankles grabbed;
Weekends, conjuring
Symbols from silence
Scribbled on
Sides of times,
-Skin surrenders to
-Scissor's detachment,
-Map without
-A treasure;
Empty promises,
The handoff of a
Rent-controlled
Apartment,
-Tightrope strung between
-Rent check and drudge work,
-Perception,
-Prescription;
'Trust your instincts as
Observer,' he said,
Ground coated
Plate gouged, bathed
-In acid, ink spread,
-Wiped clean, filled lines pressed
-Down, absorbed
-In sheets pulled;
'Trust your judgement from
Works studied, books spread,'
He said, walls'
Admissions
-Vetted, venom penned,
-Victims paraded,
-Callus spared
-Hands resigned;
Trust to looks in youth,
Beauty's currency
Travel, meals,
Talent, luck?
-Draw social circle,
-Art school naturals,
-Packed pants? Stalls,
-And valets;
Broad jacket shoulders,
Deep blue background, but
Shirt's neck left
Unbuttoned,
-Blood red tie loosely
-Hitched, father, son
-Seeking the
-Right balance;
Bald dome, seated on
Concrete, squinting as
Notes travel
The distance,
-City's vibrancy
-Resonates too late,
-Sound, fury,
-Extinguished.
6 June 2016
