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Whilst We Dream, Life Continues



In which I present to you draft 2 of verses 11-20 out of the 1,000 I am aiming for. Each verse should represent a moment worth noting, and all of these moments are to happen in one imaginary day. It was an easy idea to have, and at around 500 verses now (in first draft) I wish I had hit upon a lower number. But 1,000 Miracles In One Day is what I started, and it will thrill like a miracle when I get there. Reworking the earlier verses is helping to spring more forth.

From sleep one sigh emits, an exhaled
Aspiration that will persist
Until action is provoked
From the haunted dreamer

Limbs shift, covers uncover,
Disrupt rest, limbs tangle untangle,
Cozy back, settle, the drama
Resolves into contentment

Outside, tides ebb and flow over hours
Over sand. Dark waves roll, bring
To the shore the energy of night
Endurance, catharsis

Peaceful, acquiescent sleep
In this muted cotton-dressed bed
The right place to be, the right time
Neither too warm nor too cold

Deeper in the sea, modern
Sharks rest in active currents
After 400 million years of
Sharpening instinct

The spider crosses the floor
In stealth mode, a ripple of legs
A stack of eyes, ancient technology
In textbook working motion

A singular star is not a constant
The light, the pinpoint light, of 
It travels from a celestial
Mortal body

The moon is not a light source
It reflects. Without the sun the moon
Has nothing to show in our sky
Moonlight is sunlight, diverted

The centre of now is a point, a hub
From which all other activity
Can be mapped, depicted visually
Spokes of ink blend and saturate

An apple drops from its tree
Hits the ground with a cartoon thwack
Bumping down the incline, arrives
Spun out, at the foot of the tall grass

I want all the parts to be able to stand alone, to encourage appreciation of the life described: how the whole thing will hang together is the intrigue that really holds my interest in continuing this project. And after all this work, maybe I should even go to the extreme of seeking publication. For a 4,000 line poem..?



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