David Redpath

Plus Feather, Fur, Scale, & Skin

‘Eye-Rachnophobia’

The ‘Happiness Report’
from the pagan haven
of a gated resort
Machine tooled
from a block of concrete
Then deposited upon
a mangrove swamp
along a once pristine coast
Now a checkpoint
and a guard tower
The lungs of nature
dying …
of tourist cancer

SUNSHINE MANDALA
Mr. Fire-ring Philanthropy
of the Wall Street Diddle
and magnate
of all things plastic
that float upon the sea
to whom do you compare?
31 million light years away
the Whirlpool Galaxy!
Somewhere way past
the Milky Way’s middle
and the black hole
for star dust to recycle

As the quantum leaps
the physics of mechanics
masters of the known universe
praying to manifestations
of the Perpetual Parallelogram
whilst paying their taxes
to Never Never Land
Like sunshine on the shoulder
of Mr. Mandala
The black tie-dyed dysfunction
misfiring on all cylinders
across energy dark oceans
Scouring the cosmos
for the lingering cinders
of big bang smoke rings
Leaving nothing but
trails of toxic compost

All creation unfolding
The pleasure of her planets
beyond all measure
tasting the royal blue
starlight of Rigel
Antares … Mu Cephei
and Canis Majoris
An explosion
of symphonic sampling
The pollen from…

Earth to Mars

My husband is missing
deep in cyberspace
He was last seen on Mars
(Does Elon Musk
know that my X man
got there first?)
Now I’ve lost all trace
Is he missing me
somewhere on Planet Poetry
whilst hunting
and collecting
in an alternate universe?
Where aliens
with inktipped claws
scratch each other’s backs
with a quote or a verse
of wisdom … or vice
depending on their mood
I don’t mean to sound terse
for it is their chosen food
To regurgitate the past
and masticate the future
From haunted dreams
to visions of slendour
night and day
they meander
Is that him I hear
swaggering like Jagger
through the front door
or some Jabberwocky
crying out for more?
No …
So if you see him
the one in an oilskin coat
a snakeskin belt
Cuban boots
and an old felt hat
please let him know