And more from Thom Young….
the surf
isn\’t what
it use to be
now
it
washes up
lives
and dirty needles
and once they found
a lady
in a green dress
face down on the beach
she said her
name was Amber
which seemed like a good enough
name
but the tourists
were too distracted
by a school
of Bluefish
to know
they were
already eaten
Have you ever read a piece of literature, more specifically poetry that allowed you to linger on a number of images? Surf reminds me of many different things at once, the first thought was with regards to the dead body found on the shore. I started to contemplate of a show from the 90\’s which met its demise after two seasons called Twin Peaks. It had that creepy undertone to it just like the feel of this poem. Another image that comes to mind is the after effects of the tsunami from 2004. You know there were a number of items that washed up on the shores of British Columbia. It\’s quite tragic indeed. I must admit I guffawed at the sarcastic tone of the last few sentences with regards to the tourists – really reminds us to keep vigilant with regards to the knowledge — that our surroundings constantly change at a moment\’s notice.
VCR
where is her body
buried?
in the past?
in the seaside
trash?
they waited
until Brody
came
to fess up.
the Orca was attacked
by something else.
and in 1982
the VCR
lied
at the slumber
party.
Stop, pause, fast forward, rewind… If you carefully look at this piece you are able to encounter past, present and future scenarios through a simple tool such as a VCR. I\’m trying to think of the best way to quantify what it is that I see with this piece. First off the movie Jaws comes to mind – the original, not any of the silly sequels that followed. And an unbelievable movie that played throughout, turned out to be a work of fiction that never seemed realistic in the first place. That is where the lie discussed in the last few sentences comes into play, in my opinion anyways.
Fries
there\’s
nothing
worse
than realizing
you should
have asked her
to dance
on that night
so long
ago
not knowing
she would leave
with
her future husband
who
chopped her
head off
and put
it
in a freezer
next
to the fish sticks
and Ore-Ida
fries.
Should\’ve, could\’ve, would\’ve unless you\’re a clairvoyant you have no idea what will transpire from the decisions you make throughout the course of your life. The way that Thom casually mentions the severed head in the freezer beside fish sticks and french fries almost borders comedy if it weren\’t so serious. Reminds me of the show Dexter….
Thanks to Thom for sharing these wonderful pieces.
CCIQ Press 