poetry

Warm water slows the swirl of words
and so I sidle towards the kitchen sink
offering to wash the dishes pro bono.
Other poets, faster on their feet, already
are gathered there, shirtsleeves rolled up,
mumbling provisional lines to themselves,
gazing vacantly at the verdant landscape
beyond the window while they finger
the glassware and polish the utensils.
The topic of this year’s symposium,
Neither Rhyme nor Reason, kindles
heated debate amongst the attendees,
many of whom abhor the brash impulse

“But I don’t know anyone like that ,” she said.
Smiling deeply into her eyes, I reply
“You know me.”
But she will not believe, needing
to be different from the people
she serves; needing an accomplice
to her invention of superiority.
“But, you were never like them,” she gasped.
The meaning clear: she held herself separate from
the people she treated and I, another acupuncturist,
must be like her, not like “them.”
“Addiction is subject to degrees,” I say.
“We all have a void. We all crave a return

A country a land
where rivers, tributaries
merged after flotsam jetsam
color, religion, race, mingled
into architectural shapes, texture
a huge monolith, a temple of bewilderment
a country where war and peace lived
where ancient seers told stories of a King
or a great ancient battle, bedrock of entire
civilization. Where foreigners sought expediency
ruled, shattered economy but foisted a language
a hermitage an offspring, Macaulay’s pen spurned
a language, even they say Renaissance

Benny Wills (aka one of the collaborators behind the JoyCamp “conscious comedy” group) joins us today to discuss the next step in his evolution as a creative human being: poetry! We talk about his new video/poem “Bill Lost His Memory” and what it means for the future of Benny and JoyCamp.

[audio mp3="http://www.corbettreport.com/mp3/2017-12-13%20Benny%20Wills.mp3"][/audio]Benny Wills (aka one of the collaborators behind the JoyCamp "conscious comedy" group) joins us today to discuss the next step in his evolution as a creative human being: poetry! We talk about his new video/poem Bill Lost His Memory and what it means for the future of Benny and JoyCamp.

He feels she called him out of love,
So turns, his life jumps up, they run
Joyously into each other’s arms
As the snow falls upon them
For the first time,alone to face
The gathering storm.

She rose up out of the Autumn leaves,
swiping cobwebs from her hair and face.
Yawned thrice, shuddering like
‘Someone Had Just Walked Over Her Grave’
and looked around with wide eyes
which were regaining their colour and sparkle.
Physically ‘Stuck’ for months,
she had travelled acres inside,
traversing rocky terrain and cavern bottom.
Look, a magpie…
squinting slightly, she half-smiled,
it was so nice to be focusing
upon something other than herself for a change.
The Woods-edge brought the Light back in,

poetry is badly written prose
when sentences fail
and our dreams compose
the spaces between the dark
and silence
in a language
we have yet to learn
the first steps
in a childhood dance
where words
step on others’ toes
by chance
No orchestra plays
But birds stretch
their wings
candles flicker
and hearts would sing
a feather falls
beneath their feet
and ink drops
mark the place
where they meet.

The consent of the majority impedes the winter morning
‘You’ve lost that loving feeling’ plays, and I am angry.
Here is the December march put to bed
This years war planning; the soldier looks to the new year.
You do not need to vocalise this, yet I have of late
I see presents and trees in a thousand homes;
There will be that few left out there.
When we were young they did set the stars by us
The general from the US calls
‘What is my fate?’ an unwanted politician needs to ask me
And I listen
To the radio.

Troop of monkeys
Barged into our house
Rampaging tables and chairs
Throwing out pictures
Dancing on beds
Preying on fruits and vegetables
Meticulously stored in refrigerator
Hidden in a room interior
Leaving with the booty
Causing catastrophe
They seem to convey
In a symbolic way
How we humans
Supposed to be their descendants
Are destroying forests
And natural resources
Leaving the wild animals
Clueless and homeless
In utter distress
To commit offences