deepundergroundpoetry.com
Of Insects & Order
I’d come to adore you in your blue hat
on a silent afternoon, thought furrowed,
cigarette in hand while furious traffic
ploughed on beneath a balcony,
twin cups of tea on a city’s smudged stone
while you talked of everything
and nothing at all
childhood
council-tax
the telly pulled from a skip
in the dead of night
that needed a new plug
there was something comforting there,
as if all the junk in your head became mine
in some unimportant corner of the world.
Talking to you
was just like talking to me —
the randomness of it, as if your brain
had too many browser tabs open at once
and I knew exactly what that was like
to have all the ideas
and none of the plans
to hyper-focus on detail,
because the bigger picture looked grand
but overwhelming as fuck
so you flitted, like silverfish
from one thought to the next
as I watched the hollow in your cheek
sink into your ever-shrinking skull
beneath a dull sun
beneath a mind full of wool
re-appearing momentarily
back amongst angry cars, ground frost,
our luke-warm forgotten tea.
There’s a lot to be said
for how safety allows us to be
everything that we are
and that was the word
I valued most:
safety
to be myself
to not have anything expected of me
no bullshit to live up to
just old insects and camaraderie
scuttling ruins in the Northern dark.
on a silent afternoon, thought furrowed,
cigarette in hand while furious traffic
ploughed on beneath a balcony,
twin cups of tea on a city’s smudged stone
while you talked of everything
and nothing at all
childhood
council-tax
the telly pulled from a skip
in the dead of night
that needed a new plug
there was something comforting there,
as if all the junk in your head became mine
in some unimportant corner of the world.
Talking to you
was just like talking to me —
the randomness of it, as if your brain
had too many browser tabs open at once
and I knew exactly what that was like
to have all the ideas
and none of the plans
to hyper-focus on detail,
because the bigger picture looked grand
but overwhelming as fuck
so you flitted, like silverfish
from one thought to the next
as I watched the hollow in your cheek
sink into your ever-shrinking skull
beneath a dull sun
beneath a mind full of wool
re-appearing momentarily
back amongst angry cars, ground frost,
our luke-warm forgotten tea.
There’s a lot to be said
for how safety allows us to be
everything that we are
and that was the word
I valued most:
safety
to be myself
to not have anything expected of me
no bullshit to live up to
just old insects and camaraderie
scuttling ruins in the Northern dark.
Published Yesterday
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likes 2
reading list entries 1
comments 4
reads 42
Commenting Preference:
The author encourages honest critique.
Yesterday 4:27pm
The last couplet is brilliant. You're very talented at generating images and capturing this casual yet literate voice.
Yesterday 6:24pm
Thank you, I really appreciate that. Glad to see people are still enjoying narratives.
Cheers and stuff 🙂
-M
Cheers and stuff 🙂
-M
Yesterday 5:47pm
I love how all your details come together to build a feeling of peace & respect... and yes, safety. People like this are such a treasure.
Also:
"to have all the ideas
and none of the plans"
FUCK... this is my brain summed up. And silverfish!!! What a perfect metaphor for those infuriatingly elusive thoughts. Damn I hate those things! <shudder>
Lots to love in this. It's nice to read you again.
❤️k
Also:
"to have all the ideas
and none of the plans"
FUCK... this is my brain summed up. And silverfish!!! What a perfect metaphor for those infuriatingly elusive thoughts. Damn I hate those things! <shudder>
Lots to love in this. It's nice to read you again.
❤️k
Yesterday 6:27pm
They are an absolute treasure. I like the ones that come in, bringing nothing but peace with them. They teach you to love yourself just that little bit more.
Thanks for the comment on silverfish. Happy to hear that you relate, I appreciate that.
Nice to see you, too.
-M
Thanks for the comment on silverfish. Happy to hear that you relate, I appreciate that.
Nice to see you, too.
-M
