What Can Be Saved?
omens fill his head
in the night he wakes
makes mental notes
what can be saved?
memorises the locations of
pens
passports
the thin roll of various currencies
should that live in the bedside drawer?
or be at hand by the front door?
but what if the flames prevent
him getting down the stairs?
he maps alternate routes
decides on small parcels of use and memory
scattered throughout the house
he can be at peace
now at least
As usual I do not think this is the finished poem. I start by writing them in a book longhand and revising them until I think they have a structure. I then put them onto the computer and play about with layout. At some indeterminate point they are then ready to show the world. Mostly I work by intuition, and I suppose experience.
Here’s the stupendous Ryley Walker. A whole concert! He’s got a couple of new downloads at Bandcamp. Here’s the link.
Until next time.