Two by
Linda King
bolt of mourning cloth
at the edge of knowledge reality remains up for grabs
with no ground to stand on you fall and keep falling
your heart turning over all those fragile details
something else to pray for the philosophy of water
blue glass starfish coastal storms read the ocean
buy a ticket alert the media sound the alarm
the official machinery just gains and losses what comes undone
matters that don’t work themselves out
verbs in past perfect heirloom anxiety borderline bloodline
bolt of mourning cloth that will never unfurl
orphaned by request
stopped in your tracks they want papers passports
every one a soldier of something every one of them
displays a massive god complex but you have been
orphaned by request hold a grief that will remain
unpaid a hard conclusion
all the seats on the train filled with the grieving
they wear a look of complete disbelief
in lieu of flowers knapsacks overflow
with whatever could be pulled
from the rubble
Linda King is the author of five poetry collections including Reality Wayfarers (Shoe Music Press, 2016) and antibodies in the alphabet (BlazeVOX Books, 2020). Her work has appeared in numerous literary journals (including ē·rā/tiō) in Canada and internationally. She lives and writes on The Sunshine Coast of British Columbia, Canada.