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Susceptible Creatures

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Blending in with the trunks

of maple trees. Here

like the shedding of cells

or growing hair follicles.

I will not speak today of the poison

thickening my soup, nor will

I speak of the weight compressing

my lungs. For some angels have swarmed me

and I promised them silence. This dying will be hard

like choking on a breadstick.

But after that is through, nobody

will break me. After that, dancing

will be made easy, and breathing will mean nothing

but a gentle flow

of in and out.

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Copyright © 2006 by Allison Grayhurst

amazon.com/author/allisongrayhurst

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Published in “SpinRock Reader Lit Forum” November 2015

http://spinrockreader.blogspot.ca/2015/11/susceptible-creatures-poem-by-allison.html

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You can listen to the poem by clicking below:

https://allisongrayhurst.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/susceptible-creatures.m4a?_=1

 

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“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.

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