Hello PoetryVoting

Vote

Voting-Boards

Home

HomeFollowingInboxNotifications

Read

ReadLiftedFeedsHeartedHistoryMy poemsNew poem

Explore

ExploreOrbitsWordsTagsClassics
Log in
0
Stars
0
Embers
0
Alerts
0
Inbox

Vote

Voting-Boards

Home

HomeFollowingInboxNotifications

Read

ReadLiftedFeedsHeartedHistoryMy poemsNew poem

Explore

ExploreOrbitsWordsTagsClassics
Log in
0
Stars
0
Embers
0
Alerts
0
Inbox

7

Write some fallen leaves

without overly detailed imagery

 

and place them

in catchy hooks

on a non-descript lawn

 

Construct a rake

from unused punctuation

 

and use it to gather

the leaves into a pile

under the guise

of poetic license

 

Record the crunching noises

while stepping into the leaf pile

 

and turn the sounds into tracks

that are played on repeat

until the soundscape inspires

more fallen leaves

 

Then share the loop of fallen leaves

 

In that direction

don't worry about limited métier

or imagism

or geography

or that pixelated

worms are numbers

Interpretation will take care

of the wormholes

and the melting iceberg theory

will make sense

in the imagination of people

who include climate change

in the worlds that sprout

around the fallen leaves

 

There will always be a place

where evergreens grow

in a soil enriched by earthworms

that churn ornamental detritus

into beds of gut feelings

and blood mixes with sap

when fallen needles pierce the skin

 

It's a place

where the tops of river rocks

are bleached bone-white

when water runs low

because the sky rests for no one

 

It's a place

where it's difficult to discern between

the dried veins of fallen leaves

and moth's wings

shredded apart

on the deciduous bark

where you called her name

to only hear your echo return

that day

 

It's a place

to repetitiously re-learn

our contradictions

 

and where breath

erodes the anxiety

that clings onto

unconscious summits

 

until the reasons for being

are revealed

Request permission to use this poem
Written by
chris-d-aechtner-1
M / Canadian
Published
Nov 13, 2021
Lines·Words
62·247
Notes

First published in SWITCH Poetry/Prose #1, Hallowe'en 2016

Tags
#itsbeeninfrontoftheeyesandallaroundthesensesallalong
Permission

Request to use this poem

Tell chris-d-aechtner-1 how you would like to use it. We review requests before forwarding them.

AboutBlogFAQPrivacyTermsContact
© 2009-2026 Hello Poetry/v27.0 by @eliotyork
Explore
Hello PoetryVoting
Write