Oh my word, I'm fanning myself! Such luscious imagery and urgency in this poem Faye. More people need to invite the tornado into their lives - stir things up a bit.
this was a big tornado 😅 but luckily i got to the eye of the storm (that's where you're supposed to be safe, right?) i'm so glad you enjoyed it. and also quite interesting, as i feel like i'm cooling down significantly, there you are fanning yourself!. which is another luscious image ;)
mmm i love that you picked that part out. It is an especially rich moment for me.
and yes, exactly - all the layers compose the song, the harmonies and the discords, which i'm sure being a musician and poet you understand far better than I do, But hey, complain away about the heat. That shit can be overwhelming
anyway i really appreciate you reading and sharing your experience <3
A wonderful thing your poetry, it comes at you (me) like a bobcat with most of the claws put away- there are a lot of metaphors that could come to mind about the kind of subconscious flood of images and actions you pack into your stuff. I would like your opinion of this poem.
oh it's so interesting to hear your poetic takes on my poetry, like a bobcat with most of its claws put away. I like that.
The rhino feels a lot like my tornado. I both enjoy and am made uncomfortable by the image of a huge field of fermenting guavas. I can smell vinegar but I also want to stick my hands in them. And then i'm not entirely sure where the rhino comes from, but i like the connection with the fence; it makes total sense - it arises seemingly out of nowhere, out of a thought about a fence, which seems like something more than that.
I especially like the, "can't you reason with him?" bit. As if anyone could reason with something wild.
And I like how the story points to the difference between idealized experience, an orderly life, and the actual and inevitable experience of having that life disturbed by something out of your control.
Emphasis on "most". Thanks for reading and the cool comments. I can't say what that rhino is but he showed up so I had to write in down or he would have gored me.
I have to tell you a quick story. My grandpa lived in Indiana as a boy growing up on a farm. He left in 1919 when he was 22. In town one day someone reached inside their truck and stole something. My grandpa ran trap lines so he took a small bobcat he trapped and stuffed it into a suitcase and left it in the truck. He watched a guy steal the suitcase with the bobcat inside and drive off. He went about 50 yards and then crashed the car. I think a small bobcat in enclosed space like a car would be quite something. I'm sure there's a moral here somewhere.
thank you, Mike, that is oh so refreshing to hear. I feel like i got a little away from myself for a minute. though i do suppose that's just part of the wave. perhaps strayed a bit further from center than i'm used to.
I cry at Home Alone and Back to the Future now. It’s awesome being highly attuned to emotion. I also love rollercoasters. If I’m afraid of them, I love them more.
Oh my word, I'm fanning myself! Such luscious imagery and urgency in this poem Faye. More people need to invite the tornado into their lives - stir things up a bit.
this was a big tornado 😅 but luckily i got to the eye of the storm (that's where you're supposed to be safe, right?) i'm so glad you enjoyed it. and also quite interesting, as i feel like i'm cooling down significantly, there you are fanning yourself!. which is another luscious image ;)
So many stunning images and phrases here! I really latched on to: "i want to speak to algae and
feel my particles dissolving into not nothing, but not me."
Thank you Will :) that line latched itself onto the page!!
Yes. That line hit me as well. Like, whoa, I’ve been there, and it was unusual and hard to describe, but Faye just described it!
So sensuous! I felt every line. So beautiful Faye!
That last line! i cast a spell with yesterday. So much to digest here. You have a beautiful voice
“…i laid on the deck
reading you like my life depended on it.
because, well, it did. and you told me
you liked open gates. you liked
peering in. i took it as an invitation.”
Faye, there is so much to take in and feel here. To think I had the audacity of complaining about the heat here in the mountains.
But it’s the weaving of relationships, nature, and weather which makes this so stunning.
mmm i love that you picked that part out. It is an especially rich moment for me.
and yes, exactly - all the layers compose the song, the harmonies and the discords, which i'm sure being a musician and poet you understand far better than I do, But hey, complain away about the heat. That shit can be overwhelming
anyway i really appreciate you reading and sharing your experience <3
The pleasure is all mine, Faye. It really was a beautiful piece of writing.
A wonderful thing your poetry, it comes at you (me) like a bobcat with most of the claws put away- there are a lot of metaphors that could come to mind about the kind of subconscious flood of images and actions you pack into your stuff. I would like your opinion of this poem.
The Rhino
I was wondering when
the rhino would arrive.
It’s that time of year.
The next town over
said the old guava plantation
had a huge crop laying
on the ground, fermenting.
They put a fence around it
but you know rhinos and fences.
Some have said to me,
“Can’t you reason with him?”
and here, I think, we have
different ideas about rhinos.
Mine is not reasonable-
no time spent in hammocks
or comparative literature class.
When mine is nearby,
a triage occurs.
How close is he?
How reliable is my source?
Do I have loved ones nearby?
And when the knock comes,
it arrives at the tip
of a very large horn,
to say nothing about
the following mass.
Soon thereafter, my door jamb
undergoes great stress,
things become unhinged,
deadbolts forgo their one job
and he’s in my kitchen.
With the merest nod
he can upset many
tastefully placed collectibles.
Mine is an orderly life,
gained through a lifetime.
I have no room
for a rhino.
oh it's so interesting to hear your poetic takes on my poetry, like a bobcat with most of its claws put away. I like that.
The rhino feels a lot like my tornado. I both enjoy and am made uncomfortable by the image of a huge field of fermenting guavas. I can smell vinegar but I also want to stick my hands in them. And then i'm not entirely sure where the rhino comes from, but i like the connection with the fence; it makes total sense - it arises seemingly out of nowhere, out of a thought about a fence, which seems like something more than that.
I especially like the, "can't you reason with him?" bit. As if anyone could reason with something wild.
And I like how the story points to the difference between idealized experience, an orderly life, and the actual and inevitable experience of having that life disturbed by something out of your control.
Thanks for sharing this with me Wes
Emphasis on "most". Thanks for reading and the cool comments. I can't say what that rhino is but he showed up so I had to write in down or he would have gored me.
it was a pleasure :) and ha! yes there are still a few claws to catch. i know exactly the feeling you’re talking about
I have to tell you a quick story. My grandpa lived in Indiana as a boy growing up on a farm. He left in 1919 when he was 22. In town one day someone reached inside their truck and stole something. My grandpa ran trap lines so he took a small bobcat he trapped and stuffed it into a suitcase and left it in the truck. He watched a guy steal the suitcase with the bobcat inside and drive off. He went about 50 yards and then crashed the car. I think a small bobcat in enclosed space like a car would be quite something. I'm sure there's a moral here somewhere.
Ha! I can think of a quite few morals. wow. Bobcat in a suitcase. that's quite something.
He had a great sense of humor, spectacular practical joker.
Beautiful! A fresh facet of classic Fayeness.
thank you, Mike, that is oh so refreshing to hear. I feel like i got a little away from myself for a minute. though i do suppose that's just part of the wave. perhaps strayed a bit further from center than i'm used to.
That’s like your whole m.o.! Embrace it! Enlarge yourself!
embracing!!! this substack post is legit making me weep
Crying is fuckin dope
one of my top talents honestly
I cry at Home Alone and Back to the Future now. It’s awesome being highly attuned to emotion. I also love rollercoasters. If I’m afraid of them, I love them more.