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The bell
by Shirin Swift
With no voice this forest wakes
from its burial.
I line up to kiss the nails left in the wood,
dressed in a magdalene's rags -
duly lidded yet this forest stirs;
from its wooden burial conceived en
chanted leaves knotted staves trigger roots
sea tubas blow-lift up patched soil
sight-reading the compositions
under our feet the trees are playing our song
branches tremendous, long and sweet as chuckles:
bark slurping resin; the bell steams apart my thoughts
tiger intervening fog.
With no voice this forest takes
from its secret kists
to replenish those who kiss its vapors, ankles
and its roots with lower vows: timbres re-awakening
sun and human
with no voice
the forest wakes, and wakes
us
for we are watercolors and assume no shape
where no voice-brush rings
yet how my body is rung
by the music of breath and shadows and light.
Lately, this forest sleeps
with no voice, tosses painfully and calls for the sky
from its dreams to dusk cool landings of rain, dew, locusts, fallen leaves
to soothe these urbane cheeks.
By the rain-broken patio Buddhas asleep
on swinging railway cables,
one of heaven's bells has fallen, clashed with us, becoming the stirring sea
and the rowdy feet of Demuth's bathers
intervening here and there...
taking us on trains into infinity.
12/31/2006 Author's Note:
a draft, to be completed in the new year
Posted on 12/31/2006
Copyright © 2024 Shirin Swift
| Member Comments on this Poem |
| Posted by Kathleen Wilson on 01/01/07 at 07:05 PM What rings true to me: the musical imagery, inventive and as always, bold counterpoint of language and imagination. The en/chanted leaves --draws attention to the music within. The "sea tubas" get a smile from me-- wonderful botanical play--the "blow--lift" works to get the moment of a strong current of air into the instrument and at the same time--wind on a forest floor. "branches tremendous, long and sweet as chuckles:
bark slurping resin;"(delicious)--love this. Chuckles are usually shorter...but somehow this extends them into a series..."the bell steams... tiger" yes, you make this work... tiger would be in the forest, the bell would have the same effect coming into consciousness. The "kists" (I looked this up) a fine image here, and also original, with depth. The mix of watercolors and sound-- true to experience "voice brush" --yes. And "my body is rung". Yes. |
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