24 items collected May 13th and mused about. Written in a hour. Edited over days. |
Note: This work has been made into a chapbook which is available by sending an email to me with an address (don't put personal info in a comment). There are 100 signed copies. When I run out, I may or may not run a second edition with revisions. Any comments as to which are favorites and which need major work (I know a couple myself ) are appreciated. 1 after the melt Brown leaf leather, worn and crinkled, torn tips, five points equaling a maple that survived the winter, would not have survived the mold of Spring. It sits in my palm. It does not quiver. 2 a heart too small for the Tin Man A shepherd's purse blooms in a crack, sets seed in heart shaped capsules too small for the Tin Man. 3 empty lungs Parliament Lights with recessed filters, a blue-on-white crushed box. Foil glints silver, an empty lining, no cloud of smoke. 4 cotton-not-candy Lint blown from the laundry: felted blue magma, white sun, brown thread hides a swirl of red, a dry soft clump, no blood. 5 blossoms Apple greets the bicycles: white petals and yellow stamens, fragrant spokes that survived yestermorn's cold will set fruit in the warmth of tomorrow's sun. 6 after the pollination A tulip petal clings to its stem, tattered red, black at its base its usefulness spent. I gently remove its bruised silk finger. I do not snap its head. 7 does it know yet? Cedar pruned and tossed, fragrant reminder of what remains evergreen, even past its passing. 8 death of innocence I pluck a newborn mapleleaf, soft and silky to the touch, so thin, translucent. Yet, once severed from the branch no more alive than last Fall's golden carpet. 9 used symbols 2 red, 1 blue, 1 grey A series of numbers, colors meaning something to someone. 0491 297 On a torn piece of paper, enigma to me. 10 there are thousands of others Dandelion seed and maple blossoms rest on the back of an ivy leaf the fertile, the infertile and the evergreen meet the same fate. 11 too big... as usual Black belt, inscribed metal buckle: Georgia. Say it! Like any old belt... it can't sing. 12 can you light the way to San José? Freedom lights the way, "strike gently" say these matches manufactured in New Hampshire. "Thank-you" "come back again" to Jaffrey (west of Nashua?). "close cover" to not torch this empty parking lot? 13 not so popular Young Ivy: poplar poser, smooth, green, waxy. Ah... Those of us who know you know your stealth and smother. 14 lobed brown leaf It could be oak; it could be... Away from its mother, does it matter? It had its day... then flew away. 15 balm of lonely times Blintex lip ointment... whose lips it touched did not touch mine. 16 pencil it in "Write solutions" it proclaims on a bright yellow stick; broken now, even the eraser crumbles. 17 pick it up or leave it A shiny Lincoln, a 1995 D cent, is it worth the risk of straining my back or wrenching my neck? 18 lid without eye This worn plastic... if swept away to the river, how far would it travel? if put in the trash, how long to its death? 19 Caplug Black plastic born in Buffalo ...just like me... now both of us broken, transported, abandoned in Montana, of little use, you see. 20 Johnny, jump me Indigo silk, a purple streak guiding wings to the bright yellow center: hidden stamens, green pistil, waiting womb. 21 like me Brown scunci, dirty but still flexible, usable, beneath being missed... 22 ...or like this bobby pin pinched, poked and prodded, a relic of lifetime's neglect. 23 to be singular Brass nozzle gleaming like gold, yet unattached... of what worth are you? 24 or co-dependent A smoked cigarette. Parliament. Like someone we all know... burnt, not quite to the end. Cento for Trash after the melt: I gently remove its bruised silk finger felted blue magma, white sun, brown thread, dirty but still flexible like any old belt away from its mother poplar poser a series of numbers, colors, the fertile, infertile and the evergreen, burnt, no cloud of smoke. Trash.1 after the melt: a series of short quips recorded by staring at trash picked up in Missoula on the 13th of May, in the block of Higgins, Spruce, Pattee and Pine. © Kåre Enga 2009 Kåre Enga, Box 9036, Missoula, MT 59807; enga@ymail.com Printed in Montana Notes: 1-3 [166.53.a,b,c] 4-6 [166.54.a,b,c] 7-9 [166.55.a,b,c] 10-12 [166.56.a,b,c] 13-17 [166.57.a,b,c,d,e] 18-24 [166.58.a,b,c,d,e,f,g] Before the edit: 1 after the melt Brown leaf leather, worn and crinkled, torn tips, five points equaling a maple that survived the winter, would not have survived the mold of Spring. It sits in my palm. It does not quiver. 2 a heart too small for the Tin Man A shepherd's purse blooms in a crack, sets seed in heart shaped capsules too small for the Tin Man. 3 empty lungs Parliament Lights with recessed filters, a blue-on-white crushed box. Foil glints silver, an empty lining, no cloud of smoke. 4 cotton-not-candy Lint blown from the laundry: felted blue magma, white sun, brown thread hides a swirl of red, a dry soft clump, no blood. 5 blossoms Apple greets the bicycles: white petals and yellow stamens, fragrant spokes that survived yestermorn's cold will set fruit in the warmth of tomorrow's sun. 6 after the pollination A tulip petal clings to its stem, tattered red, black at its base its usefulness spent. I gently remove its bruised silk finger. I do not snap its head. 7 does it know yet? Cedar pruned and tossed, fragrant reminder of what remains evergreen, even past its passing. 8 death of innocence I pluck a newborn mapleleaf, soft and silky to the touch, so thin, translucent. Yet, once severed from the branch no more alive than last Fall's golden carpet. 9 used symbols 2 red, 1 blue, 1 grey A series of numbers and colors meaning something to someone. 0491 297 On a torn piece of paper, enigma to me. 10 there are thousands of others Dandelion seed and maple blossoms rest on the back of an ivy leaf the fertile, the infertile and the evergreen meet the same fate. 11 too big... as usual Black belt, inscribed metal buckle: Georgia. Say it! Like any old belt... can it sing? 12 can you light the way to San José? Freedom lights the way, "strike gently" say these matches manufactured in New Hampshire. "Thank-you" "come back again" to Jaffrey (west of Nashua?). "close cover" to not torch this empty parking lot? 13 not so popular Young Ivy: poplar poser, smooth, green, waxy. Ah... Those of us who know you know your stealth and smother. 14 lobed brown leaf It could be oak; it could be... Away from its mother, does it matter? It had its day... then flew away. 15 balm of lonely times Blintex lip ointment... whose lips it touched did not touch mine. 16 pencil it in "Write solutions" it proclaims on a bright yellow stick; broken now, even the eraser crumbles. 17 pick it up or leave it A shiny Lincoln, a 1995 D cent, is it worth the risk of straining my back or wrenching my neck? 18 lid without eye This worn plastic... if swept away to the river, how far would it travel? if put in the trash, how long would it live? 19 Caplug Black plastic born in Buffalo ...just like me... now both of us broken, transported, abandoned in Montana, of little use, you see. 20 Johnny, jump me Indigo silk, a purple streak guiding wings to the bright yellow center: hidden stamens, green pistil, waiting womb. 21 like me Brown scunci, dirty but still flexible, usable, beneath being missed... 22 ...or like this bobby pin pinched, poked and prodded, a relic of some woman's neglect. 23 to be singular Brass nozzle gleaming like gold, yet unattached... of what worth are you? 24 or co-dependent A smoked cigarette. Parliament. Like someone we all know... burnt, not quite to the end. Cento for Trash after the melt: I gently remove its bruised silk finger felted blue magma, white sun, brown thread, dirty but still flexible like any old belt poplar poser away from its mother a series of numbers and colors, the fertile, infertile and the evergreen, burnt, no cloud of smoke. |