Annemarie Austin
Ghost Talk
I remember
sticking the tiny scalloped trumpets of lilac blossoms
with yellow resin to a wooden box.
But the gum did not act out amber and preserve.
Purple browned,
the lacquer turned to shreds and freckles.
I remember
tapping the dregs of juice from tins of peaches,
apricots and pears,
hoping to accumulate a bottleful of nectar.
But the sweetness would not stand still.
It soured and fizzed in its flask under the bookcase.
And now
mutability has come to a stop.
The lilacs bloom in the vase in ghastly permanence
whilst I am forever stepping towards them,
small scissors in my hand
sending a sudden, everlasting, steely light.
Page(s) 69
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