No unity, no belonging to any land, to any
one in particular // vulnérable
O, although I am wearing confident shoes
I am not so much a confident walker
‘I’ll follow you, watch out for wild verdure!’
Memory moments grasped here and there
Not all in the nick of time // désœuvrement
In front, he skirted effortlessly across the stones
Punctuating the quiet stream
Behind I stopped, silently measuring the distance…
Trying to weave fantastic magic, a
miracle to be planted elsewhere // désir
He turned to see me anticipating
Contemplating the mathematical task
Of placing one foot in front of the other
Of knowing the right time to know where next
A confident handle of my footing // un nouveau
‘O, I can’t let myself slip!’
He traced back his effortless steps and reached out
A firm, gentle taking of my hand
When to say no to exile
and walk towards formless possibilities // risque
On we walk in confident shoes
Amidst intoxicating scent of dirt, fading stream babble
Strobing light distilling the dusk
into new communal belonging at odds with itself // avec
a journal of poetry for Aotearoa | ISSN 2744-3248