ZKGs
(2018-2020)
Bestelle dein Haus, denn du wirst sterben
und nicht lebendig bleiben.
(Isaiah 38, 1)
ZKG1
four swans fly high
above the sound
they seem to know
where they are bound
they fly in an
ascending line
combine to form
a secret sign
they slowly slice
the sky in two
as on they move
right out of view
i have no way
possess no art
to stop the folds
that fall apart
ZKG2
the blackbird chirps and
trills away
he improvises
every day
or so it seems though
it may be
he shapes his song to
fit his tree
and seamlessly the
two then merge
and fill the space where
they converge
ZKG3
Mein Fall ist, in Kürze, dieser: es ist mir
völlig die Fähigkeit abhanden gekommen,
über irgend etwas zusammenhängend
zu denken oder zu sprechen
from early on
i pinned my hopes
on words alone
so when they lie
there in my hands
like smooth sea-stones
bereft of meaning
this represents
a loss of faith
a gain of gravitas
ZKG4
get things done right now
i say to myself
don’t procrastinate
don’t shilly-shally
there’s so little time
but there’s every time
each and every time
every nowest now
ZKG5
the cherry apple
laden with berries
like notes of music
on branches of staves
pure Messiaen
beerenauslese
ZKG 6
midwinter
the rooks gyrate
above the tree
settle then swirl
flutter and flit
raucous and black
against a shifting sky –
grief that will not fade
colours that have run
done can’t be undone
made will be unmade
ZKG7
her breathing grows
ever shallower
till it surfaces
and stops
she is gone
she lies outside
in her fresh-dug grave
wrapped in her rug
topped with a white rose
less than ten metres away
a heart’s depth down
ZKG8
seize the nettle
nothing lasts or returns
until its sting is emptied
seize the nettle
ZKG9
knife-edge
were i
to shave my beard off
likewise my moustache
i would know precisely
where each whorl lay
the feeling under my fingers
of over half a century’s
intimate acquaintance
i would feel the loss
the wind in the no-longer hairs
the phantom pain
of wind in stubble
would stroke what now
was gritty skin
would incessantly
brush the moustache out
from the nostrils
pull the beard together
under the chin
in one firm caress
i put the razor back
where it belongs
until it’s time
ZKG 10
no path to stray from
there is no beauty other than what’s beautiful
no pattern formed by sudden glintings in the now
the need for solace makes no sense but is insatiable
no knowing why yet sparks of flint at sensing how
ZKG11
the 78
the pick-up arm weaves and pitches
as it surfs the groove
defies the idea
the speed is the same
at the rim
as where the track unthreads
at the endless inner circle
grief is my anchor
love the wind in my sails
ZKG12
the heavenly twins
two angry twin-gods
bastard and bollocks
share out between them
humanity’s woes
bollocks an expert
at causing diseases
in bodies that stutter
and splutter and gut
bastard the nasty
steps up the pressure
breaks minds like walnuts
with crackers unseen
up in the night sky
bastard and bollocks
wind their keys wildly
let go and then leave
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