Drains and birds' nests--season comes when you feel
Cold foundation under your bones, groan of a board
Working away from a dissolving nail
Mold and moss furrow into wood
Like children into sand; toes, then ankles
Then legs, then torso...until the sand
Blankets over laughter and sudden
Upshoots
Upstairs, glass is shattering back to silica
And the Norfolk pine that didn't fit
In the backseat on the last trip
Grows where the broken window rainwater
Scatters dust, in the top floor
Where the crows are at last living
Better than they were at the
Supermarket parking lot
Everything in the house comes to the pine
When the sun casts the monastery shadow
Of its uppermost branches,
The Abandoned Cross,
Onto the floor, sunlight kicking
That which came next down
Among those who remain
And then dragging it up the wall
Where the rats and mice live
They can hear the voices
Suddenly--broken silence freezing
Into icicles of old traps and choking boxes
Season comes when the light fades quick
And the life comes back slow
Season comes, even for them.
Sharing with The Sunday Muse for The Muse #27 and with Poets United for Poetry Pantry #426. Thanks to Carrie at The Muse for finding this haunting image and to all the people at Poets United who make Sunday such a great day for reading. Hoping everyone who celebrates has a happy Halloween next week (celebrating here on Wednesday...probably by watching My Babysitter is a Vampire because I prefer laughing to shrieking...and there were plenty of scares this weekend owing to a minor fender bender) and looking forward to a shifting season and cooler weather.
Best wishes,
Chrissa
I love the haunting, decaying feeling to this ... yet it's not effectively over the top gruesome. It speaks of the recycling, the turning in on itself, to recharge, in the dying - of the light, of the seasons, of the way things adapt and change ...
ReplyDeleteand there are so many lines that just layer image after fantastic image one upon the other - starting with the opening few words ....
I feel like I watching a film setting unfold, a story being told, at least, a snippet or part of one - and it is extremely satisfying for it.
And I have to say, I love the idea of the crows setting up shop in a better place, (that off-the cuff casualness of choosing something other than the supermarket parking lot is really crisp as an idea and image) - and the pine - oh, that aspect, those words, perfect for the telling!
Great job with this one ... :)
Thanks! I'm glad the sense of a cycle came through. :)
DeleteOoh, this is a beautiful specimen of some resplendent images, each discernible and significant in its own light. The coming of season is felt in the forms and structures of the body, as in the house. That beginning with "Cold fountain under your bones" creates a setting for the upcoming chill.
ReplyDeleteI loved this bit: "Everything in the house comes to the pine/When the sun casts the monastery shadow/Of its uppermost branches".
This is so scenic... I think you have captured the mood of the house so well
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure the house is thrilled...but thanks :)
DeleteI love the crows living on the top floor and the monastery shadow......very cool.
ReplyDeletethanks :)
DeleteLove how you captured the rotting scene here, Chrissa.
ReplyDeleteYou have painted a picture with your words of a house that I would like to avoid! :)
ReplyDeleteWowzers! Fantastic imagery in this haunting piece. A compelling poem that carried me - breathless - through every line of the place.
ReplyDeletethanks :)
DeleteHappy Halloween!
ReplyDeleteZQ
Happy Halloween!
DeleteReally enjoyed your imagery once again. Very vivid description.
ReplyDeletethanks :)
DeleteA haunting write Chrissa. So many images of Halooween. That "dissolving nail" is fantastic
ReplyDeleteThanks for dropping by my sumie Sunday this week
Much❤love
thanks--it was a bird-friendly weekend, no? :)
DeleteYour words are beautifully eerie Chrissa. You have paired them with the photo eloquently! I love it! You always inspire me!
ReplyDeleteThis was such a great picture! It was a good balance of eerie but not completely decrepit. :)
DeleteHaunting, with sensible crows.
ReplyDeleteWant to steal this for a title so badly. :)
Deleteyes, can hear the creaking of the boards and the caws of the crows.
ReplyDeleteyou have painted such a gothic scene of neglect and decay.
A richly evocative piece! I think it not only describes but transcends the original image.
ReplyDelete