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The Tide To Break A Vaulted Pain

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We are lost on this side

of the stream, sideways

looking to land & the drown fish

hooked to the shoreline.

 

If I could give you

something polished & pure,

a kiss or dolphin’s smile,

I would.

 

The sky

is melting, dripping torrents

from the punctured universe

above. And here,

between these rooms

where we live, its liquid darkness

seeps in covering our hair, our feet

in its wet, colossal tar:

alien sorrow. The silence

rages through the airvents, and the lights

burn to a dull nothing. The white-nothing

of teeth & moon & ice & cloud.

 

We seek the breath

of freedom’s wake as

magic crumbles all around us in pools of

untouchable beauty.

 

But to give you this way

the best of my living love,

to know the unseen

behind your kaleidoscope scales,

know the breakdown,

know the tenderness

& wounds,

and to hold, hold . . .

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Copyright © 1995 by Allison Grayhurst

amazon.com/author/allisongrayhurst

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First published in “Poetry and Audience”  1994/1995

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You can listen to the poem by clicking below:

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“Somewhere Falling has a richness of imagery and an intensity of emotion rare in contemporary poetry. Drawn in sharp outlines of light and darkness, and rich shades of colour, with a deep sense of loss and longing and the possibility of salvation, this is an unusual book by a gifted young poet. Grayhurst’s voice is one to which we should continue to pay attention.” — Maggie Helwig, author of Apocalypse Jazz and Eating Glass.

“Responsibility and passion don’t often go together, especially in the work of a young poet. Allison Grayhurst combines them in audacious ways. Somewhere Falling is a grave, yet sensuous book.” – Mark Abley, author of Glasburyon and Blue Sand, Blue Moon.

“Biting into the clouds and bones of desire and devotion, love and grief, Allison Grayhurst basks the reader, with breathtaking eloquence, in an elixir of words. Like lace, the elegance is revealed by what isn’t said. This is stunning poetry.” – Angela Hryniuk, author of no visual scars.

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