THE FOLLOWING POEM WAS SELECTED IN WINGWORD POETRY PRIZE 2023 LONGLIST.
When time's lost track of me
And I've cracked all of the reaper's codes
Would I rather be remembered or flushed down history?
To have freeze dried flowers thrown at still feet
And every memory wiped with lemon scented alcohol
Till nothing remains of it but glycerin and honey
Trembling on yesterday's eggshells while
constantly battling hordes of silver flies and dust bunnies
Only to be tied to pedestals then thrown onto shelves
To die once more among white washed pictures and musty attics
Or to sink into the comforting oblivion
Spirit falling from strangers that I once knew
To have my fingerprints on the world fade
My fantasies and footprints washed away
Instead of clawing desperately up time's curtains
Being an unseen soul dancing in the dark
In the hushed spaces between the stars
For here in the dark it would be quiet
Here in the dark, I could hear my own voice
I wish it wasn't about how green the grass was
But if it were, then I choose the ivory fence
Its silver gleaming in only a few pairs of eyes
With flashbacks that replay stifled giggles and our borrowed wisdom
Carried by dandelion fluff that once cradled our wishes
And you see me,
Just for a moment
In the shaky breath before the awaited chorus
In rhinestones shimmering on your suncatchers
in the doodled margins of our scribbled history
Whispering my love onto cherry blossoms and the sweet papaya air
To be carried off again into autumn- scented leaves and marmalade skies