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.
Saturday 23.03.2019
‘a pile of boulders railings’
a pile of boulders railings and paving slabs
a path into nowhere
it will appear
that water runs between us one to the other
only in a moment when water sucks up cobblestones
under the soles of your feet
when it runs and surges
(though the street perhaps remains dusty and dry)
only in the face of its magnitude as the flood brims
to fill each gully and alleyway
with water at my feet
at my ankles do I find the risk of understanding
water to my knees it rises to the level of my hips
only when bridges
and stepping stones
the bankside path and the boardwalk have gone
water floods my chest brims to the level of my armpits
my neck my ears your ears your neck
to the level of your armpits to your chest understanding
that water floods your hips your knees it unleashes
releasing your ankles your feet are moved for you
you understand
as sudden
the drenching waters retreat from the street
the heat’s shimmering itself an echo of the rippling of water
Martyn Crucefix 