Just Before

Just before

Before I say goodbye to bitterness

and the slug that crawls across my living room floor,

let me hold my breath, holding thoughts

of the executioner’s rope

sleeping very little

until morning.

Before my grave is exhumed and the daffodils planted there

are carelessly removed, let me thank my every nemesis,

the silence, the autonomy of being underground.

When I am halfway to the surface, let me keep my eyes

on the sky, never turning back to see the place

abandoned, never regretting the companions I found,

though they were roaches

and other crawly things that only stuck around

to feast on my unprotesting flesh.

As I say farewell to my six-by-six hovel

let me release the leaches that latched on

to my every side.

Let it be over with completely.

Let me rise from this pit like a child does from her bed

on Christmas morning.

amazon.com/author/allisongrayhurst

Published in “The Packington Review, Volume 8” January 2017

http://packingtownreview.com/#issues

http://www.packingtownreview.com/issues/8/toc.html#.WG6gI1MrLIV

http://www.packingtownreview.com/issues/8/allisongrayhurst/justbefore.html#.WG6gNlMrLIU

Published in “Green King Poems and Poetry Zine” October 2015

Green King Poems 1 Green King Poems 2 Green King Poem 3

http://greenkinglit.blogspot.ca/2015/10/just-before-poem-by-allison-grayhurst.html

You can listen to the poem by clicking below:

“Allison Grayhurst intertwines a potent spirituality throughout her work so that each poem is not simply a statement or observation, but a revelation that demands the reader’s personal involvement. Grayhurst’s poetic genius is profound and evident. Her voice is uniquely authentic, undeniable in its dignified vulnerability as it is in its significance,” Kyp Harness, singer/songwriter, author.

“Allison Grayhurst’s poems are like cathedrals witnessing and articulating in unflinching graphic detail the gritty angst and grief of life, while taking it to rare clarity, calm and comfort. Grayhurst’s work is haunting, majestic and cleansing, often leaving one breathless in the wake of its intelligence, hope, faith and love amidst the muck of life. Many of Allison Grayhurst’s poems are simply masterpieces. Grayhurst’s poetry is a lighthouse of intelligent honour… indeed, intelligence rips through her work like white water,” Taylor Jane Green, Registered Spiritual Psychotherapist and author.

Reviews of ‘Pushing Through the Jelly Fire’:

“This, (Pushing Through the Jelly Fire) is my second favorite book of poetry by Allison Grayhurst. I have it in paperback. I read a lot of poetry across a lot of blogs but Grayhurst’s work stands above the crowd and is of tremendous quality. I highly recommend this and The River is Blind. Her quality of writing is of a high standard and never ceases to lift my spirits as I turn pages in paperback or kindle,” Bruce Ruston, poet, photographer, founding editor of The Poetry Jar.

“Another Grayhurst masterpiece, Allison’s work has inspired me to continue creating and reading poetry,” Ann Johnson-Murphree, poet.