August 15-21, 2016: Poetry from Yin Xiaoyuan and James Babbs

Alternating Current, either Turbulent or Serene

On the beach, you asked the man in grayish windbreaker:
 ‘How do you define ‘The Will’?’
He drew a sine-wave with his finger in the sand, then wiped it away
With waves at his command. A capful of vinegar, and seething calories of vegetables
In your stomach, turning and burning, gave you the illusion
Of snakes slithering away somewhere behind. Last night on your way home,
 
There was a repeat of the scene, in which she refused to allow you
To touch her rain-drenched violin. ‘Keep your distance, am I clear?
Only one of the strings is the zero line, you just can’t tell which!’ She smiled weirdly
And ran upstairs. The string which snapped during the performance
Dragged along behind her, was as thick as a towrope. Confused, standing still there,
 
You tossed a coin into the air, and heard it
Droning fast, with strong and weak beats, alternating,
A downpour and a flood – overflowing in different directions.
Fourteen days are needed to dry your nets, and clear
All water-level data. Landforms, temperature, light from above
 
And your masculinity, will be turned inside out like a coat
On the other side of the globe.

So There

so there we were
the two of us
you and me
and our love
was a bird with broken wings
the bird couldn’t fly
but the bird would sing
in the evenings
after the light had died
and the songs it sang
were songs full of sadness
songs of madness
songs about forgotten dreams
and all of the songs the bird sang
sounded so beautiful
and we listened to them
we knew what the songs were for
but we never danced
we just sat there
across from each other
the two of us
you and me

Big Fat Moon

big fat moon
stained red in the sky
late night hours and
I’m driving back home
remembering
the angry words we exchanged
while trying to navigate
the dark curves of the road
up ahead
deer caught momentarily
in the glare of my headlights
I slam on the brakes
holding my breath
before the sudden movement
when the deer disappears
into the darkness again
so what is it about this
that reminds me of love