How to Recognise a Poem (Your Own)
By Liana Joy Christensen
You know
when you walk on a bush track at noon
the birds are hushed by heat
but down near your feet leaves rustle
and you smile to yourself
because another creature is near
it’s like that
You know
when you feel grumpy for days
nothing’s right and you don’t know why
then it shifts and fat drops of rain
kiss the dust on the pavement
the air is alive with possibilities
just before the water roars down
it’s like that
You know
when you get an ear worm
three or more words together
that tease you so much
you can’t get them out of your head
Sometimes it lasts for years
it’s like that
You know
when you ride barefoot in winter
and your feet slip off the pedals
and you stub your toes
the pain takes your breath away
it’s like that
You know
when your old best friend tells
their new best friend
your deepest, secret shame
and now everyone knows
Then, a universe away,
the cold coal of rage
becomes a diamond rhyme
it’s like that
You know
when you wake up from a dream
so luminous you rush to catch it
and though it slips through your net of words
the moth dust left behind on the mesh
glows softly for years to come
it’s like that
You know it’s like that
You know it’s like that
You know it’s like that
don’t you?
(Originally published in the US by Cicada, Vol 14, no 3, 2011 and later republished in Fremantle Press Performance Poets, 2013)
Wow! Beautiful!
i wished I’d written this! Wonderful Thank you.
The poem is good.
Yes, you know it is like that…:)