Works and Days of Division – 29 poems by Martyn Crucefix
Drawing on two disparate sources, this sequence of mongrel-bred poems has been written to respond to the historical moment in this most disunited kingdom. Hesiod’s Works and Days – probably the oldest poem in the Western canon – is a poem driven by a dispute between brothers. The so-called vacana poems originate in the bhakti religious protest movements in 10-12th century India. Through plain language, repetition and refrain, they offer praise to the god, Siva, though they also express personal anger, puzzlement, even despair. Dear reader – if you like what you find here, please share the poems as widely as you can (no copyright restrictions). Or follow this blog for future postings. Bridges need building.
Monday 4.03.2019
‘how you order’
how you order then sip your flat white with care
or diesel with care or cling film
or eat responsibly sourced seafood with care
red meat or bottled carbonated water
you dispose of in the bins provided with care
with care what you have locked away
what you have stowed in the understairs cupboard
how you travel by land sea and air with care
then insist on being used by the language with care
with care discoursing with friends
when touching friends and your extended family
with care your actions
have a care and your reactions with care
with a passionate care where possible your politics
how you govern or set out to work
or choose how and who you play with tomorrow
with care I mean take care not forgetting
all the bridges are down
Martyn Crucefix 
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Not sure about the accusatory ‘you’ Isn’t it a ‘we’ though less forceful and might inadvertently imply community?
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Hi Kathleen – thanks for your comment – I see your point about the accusatory nature of the 2nd person pronoun. Not sure I intended it to be strongly so though – the ‘you’ being used as it often is in poems to also imply the person speaking. In my mind the tone is one of warning more than accusation and I probably do want to draw some allusions towards a shared community of concern. Perhaps the poems shifts its ground from the more confrontational ‘have a care’ to the more concerned ‘take care’ at the end.
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