NO SUCH FOREVER

gold circuits
on or off–
a fourteen karat
ring
of no decibels
slim
to a finger.

the glass-
scratching
precious is pear-cut
light broke
to rainbow glint
–centred & sided
by twin
blood-fire flanks
square & flesh-mounted
yellow closure.

the slim finger is
absent. the ring
signals nothing
holds less
in it or together.

a throat
a troth
an O.

 

 

 

SLIM TUESDAY

the afternoon tore down the middle as if tuesday
were an old reader’s digest piled at the dentist’s
with a desired recipe for gumbo–firm hold applied
to the centre then rent from top to bottom like

a no-longer-loved love letter trembles in the junction
of thumb and forefinger into half then four exponentially
less and more until it is unlike itself to the point
iota blooms as confetti for mardi gras and rejoicing

tuesday’s shock of hungry raccoon prudent to rinse
cubed sugar ends with this macular degenerate of a day
kills the centre or gives the thin kiss of pneumonia
that holds while you pull and pull what won’t come.

 

 

 

BIG IN JAPAN

two o’clock in the morning japan time
mr. kobayashi seeks a part-time
kneebreaker to squeeze delinquent canadians

i swing this circus mallet figuratively
microsecond career switch contemplated
gordie, why haven’t you respected your invoice
you are shaming yourself–have you no honour?

motivated by the poetics of 5% commission
plus a K monthly expense pocket honey
the job offer proceeds with CV request
and other legit sounding inquiries

it’s that norway time of year and i’m penned
in lines and ink–can’t click attention from dying
to die, not like this (corporate bagman for a boom)
where work is live two ay em in the darkness

i have yet to require anxiety meds
and in manageable poverty sleep like a baby
on a bed of unspent words.

 

 

stephanie roberts lives in a wee French town outside of Montréal. This year, her work is featured in two dozen journals including, Banshee, Shooter Literary Magazine, The Stockholm Review of Literature, Burning House Press, and Arcturus. She’s a recent finalist in the Eyewear Publishing LTD Fortnight Prize who counts among her strengths passionate curiosity and good humour.