Not all mermaids can have a starring role
In the fairytale. This watery court
Shaped like book pages tells chlorine-scented
Stories of the others.
Mermaid
mothers –
Where did you think they came from? - Thick-middled,
Past the clam shell bikini days, maybe,
Steel-willed on the hope of a holiday
Until dry. Time for tea and cake. A chat.
The underwater office temp swims slow,
Keeping pace with a colleague from accounts,
Turning over news they already knew –
The tangled seaweed of the day.
Angry,
Poseidon thrashes in a narrow lane,
Fast and frustrated with the endless churn
Of challengers, too regal to measure
His stroke against another.
And too sure,
Just like those sirens who keep to the side,
Gym-slim, just a quick dip – they may sing
Briefly, but they aim to keep those rocks
Hurled at them by fishing men.
A
page turns.
Strapped in sports-supportive Lycra, follow
The tile, not the rope. I am Ariel
Invisible. I’ve mastered the art of
Laughing underwater. Oh. Crying too.
As you may have already guessed, this came from the poetry workshop on the poetry of water. :) It was a garbled mess on the day, but I've chopped up some ideas and, I admit it, led with the mermaids because it fit with the M obligation... I quite like the result though, it needs some work but I feel pretty good about it as a first draft.
ReplyDeleteI really like this, and I was wondering how far and how intentional the office analogy was? It seems that you've identified several office 'personalities', or maybe archetypes, and it makes a great metaphor for sinking or swimming in the workplace (which I think is intentional? ). Maybe it just doesn't seem powerful enough to me though - I think that you've got some great images and you can tighten this into a sharp observation of office life in your experience (perhaps rather than too obvious and generic an office experience). I can almost imagine a series of poems representing different figures you've encountered! But I love the idea of the rectangular pool holding all the stories of these lives - brilliant idea, such an effective image. Follow the tile, not the rope is a great line too.
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