I'm training my eyes
I'm training my eyes to see moving pinpricksAcross the terrain of hair and freckles thatMask the targetsMy limbs a landscape hiding terrorist mitesThat biteMy groin leaving red dots, like texta spotsAnd what, morbid curiosity demandsOther tiny beasts feed off me?
To wish for a king
There's an election comingAnd I can't quite grasp at any of itSlippery stuff, vaporous wordsImages of stern men, rolled sleeves
A yearningFor courage, authenticityTo see the horizon and beyondNoble face of the king
Takes great strides through sucking mudWhere leeches, toads and lurking monstersCreatures of those shallow depths graspShake them off, look ahead
When your legs acheRemember your wingsLarge, outstretched across broad shouldersShed the swamp life, putrid and heavyLift and blazeSpectacular in morning radiance
And we will crown youPraise youUncritical, lovingWe elect youOur leader
The ruined hill
the ruined hillhot in the western suna receding fringe of gumstall at the summit
once the hill sloped gracefullygreen to lower grounduntil machines tore it raggeddusty brown and jagged
the quarry is closedstill truckers and diggers grindshifting rock and stonesplateaus for future homes
the casual lift, explosive shatterthe endless drumming hammerof rocks buried deeplyfor longer than imagining
no subtle alterationit's a crude operationthis strange dissectionthrough the belly of a ruined hill
The frame
In miniature, dawn revealsThe hilly suburbRail bridge, cars crawlingThe view from my hospital windowNewly awoken
Inside, in here, stillnessQuiet momentarilyThe distress of 3am newbornsResolved and other mothers sleepFor now
I'm sitting on sturdy chairStretch cotton nightieBaby to my breast in this pale lightMy newest success
Memory has framed this viewOf life dawningLove nestled quietlyIn a sure footed chair
Years on, that honeyed perfectionThe bliss of triumphant togethernessSoothes the shock of his rage, his energyThe boy who never stops
For Bede
Clare Locke is a graphic design honours graduate from Swinburne University's National School of Design. She situates her work in the context of social justice and human dignity, and a concern for sustainability and the environment. She is a regular contributor to the Daily Reflections in Madonna magazine.