Fears
'Danger: Avoid Death'
(Warning on a tractor in the US)
You will look left and right
so many times
the road will never be crossed.
Keep feet firmly
on the earth,
ration your breath, and
give lightning a wide berth.
Swim in nothing deeper
than a basin, let others
tell you what the view is
from a height,
leave one light on
and say a prayer
before you sleep at night.
Compromise between confined
and open spaces,
avoid outsiders and crowds,
be alert for cracks of doom,
never harbour rats or spiders,
and for total safety
just never leave your room.
Cirque de Soleil
The bamboo forest extends
into us
as we perceive human shape
emerging from such weird
planets of imagination
and applaud gyrating leap
fevered flight
of weightless spirits
happy to embrace
ecstatic choreography
of exertion such lithely
practised exhilaration
happy to soar with them
companions in illusion
gasp at marriage
of risk and beauty
seductive thrill
while beyond the tent
the world grimaces
and behaves
as it always will.
Horoscope
The moon has fallen
into your romantic
sector. Delay action.
Be less frantic.
Avoid business deals
and cross roads
with more sangfroid.
Don't compromise
but invest yourself
with gentleness. Rise
early. Confront the day.
Be alert for augury.
Hear what people
say. Don't be a skater
on thin ice. Receive
your rewards
later. Here ends
coverage of a day
without rage or joy.
It is in fact no more
than average.
Shane McCauley is a Perth poet. His published poetry collections include The Chinese Feast, Deep-Sea Diver and The Butterfly Man.