Saturday, October 15, 2011


Aubade


In sticky haze under dappling trees
shadows and limelight
coagulate
after coalescing
through the night.
Emerging to a lurid sun
that slides up into the deep,
lifting its crusty eyelid,
I walk
down a pointless street
of morning people,
dumb pets
and coffee.
The stale alcohol
and cigarette breath,
the scintillating light
and compression of garbage
have a Doppler effect
on my stagger
so I skip,
but no matter how fast I skip
away from sidelong glances,
round corners,
under shopfronts,
impersonating shadows
to outfox the light,
I can’t escape the smell
catching up with me
of someone else
on my skin.


(published in Meanjin, 2011)