BY SAM RASNAKE
Now I do have you reading don’t I, or
maybe guessing is the better word, but
either way – I’ve fooled you into thinking
you know what’s happening here on the page
but actually you don’t have a clue
since there’s no sex in this piece – and won’t be –
It’s all in your head and not in the poem –
See – I’ve fooled you again into thinking
you’re about to read a juicy story
but find yourself, instead, inside a poem
whose words these are I think are mine – but that’s
not true either since I’m inside your head,
so these words must be yours – Now – Tell me – Where
would you like this piece to go – and no, I
can’t help you there since the work is yours and
not mine – It is true – My hand is moving,
not yours – My pencil is scraping the page –
But it’s not my page – And – It’s not your page –
This is where the poem tells us what we need
to know – where the poem becomes a story –
with one character – maybe two – if we
count you – but then there’s always the reader –
at least one – in a quiet room – darkness
pushing in at the window – a bird breaks
the silence – And so we write: A bird breaks
the silence – A bit scary isn’t it –
But you’ve made it this far, so don’t stop now –
Keep going – Read until the words end – Read
until the page can tell you nothing more,
then go on with your life – Yes – I dare you
or – No – I don’t – These words aren’t here to help –
This title has a story in its sex –
I’ll leave it there – or you will – whatever
- – -
Sam Rasnake’s poetry has appeared recently in, OCHO, Shampoo, FRiGG, Poets/Artists, Press 1, BLIP, Metazen, and BluePrintReview, as well as the anthologies Best of the Web 2009 (Dzanc Books) and BOXCAR Poetry Review Anthology 2. A chapbook of poems, Inside a Broken Clock, is forthcoming from Finishing Line Press. Rasnake also edits Blue Fifth Review, an online journal of poetry and art.
