15 - regret

(I've asked people to send in pictures for me to write about. This picture was sent by the lovely Crystal.)

(noun)-–

the weight of a body on your back,
staring in a direction
in which you failed to move

mother’s voice
and father’s voice

how did you come this far
without noticing

the stranger following behind,
his arachnid legs click-clicking
as he drags himself
over scarred pavement
after you?




(Notes: It's funny that Crystal should send me this image to work with, for two reasons: 1) I've been dealing with some feelings of regret and guilt over some weird stuff lately, and 2) I've, completely coincidentally, become addicted to Florence + the Machine's new single, "Shake It Out," which addresses such feelings. It's an awesome song, much better than the poem I just produced on the subject. Go listen to it: )

14 - open wide

if I take into my mouth
all the red universe
will I
speak something perfect?

will I make
you a gift of words,
let slip between
my teeth some
holy psalm?

be honest
for a minute there
you thought I was
going to say something sexual
didn’t you?






(This week's image was sent to me by my beautiful friend Shelly, whose name is too perfect for this blog. It depicts the five minutes in which a sulcata tortoise is actually smaller than something.)

Laptop has returned

My computer has returned from the shop, meaning that I now have regular internet access again, and I've made some progress on my doctoral thingy, so The Shelled Life resumes this week.