When I was a girl

I dreamed of being a princess,

where princes would love me

and all people adore.

Now my children cry in dirty beds

while I pick up pieces of broken plate,

thrown because I let the food go cold

and couldn’t get the kids to do what they’re told.

My fault he drinks to escape all this.

My fault he has to use his fist.

But when I was a girl

I dreamed of being a princess.

take all these poems
they only make me sick
poetry is not an occupation
it’s a fucking verdict

I do most sincerely apologise,

I can give you these words,

but can’t give you my eyes.

the bottle paints it perfumed image

-                   days of empty despair

while the light that guided

smiles as I talk to her

-                          about poetry

I searched in the tattered pages of time
through jungles of wine
and clouds too light
to hold water
in wet dreams of anger
I crashed through the door
to find an empty room
with no windows
the light socket shocked my tongue
should have checked the power
if, at the end I’m asked
I’ve learned nothing other than
do not try to kiss
electricity

retracing your steps,

trying to remove the scratches

you scored in the wall

to mark off your days,

weeping for the loss of innocence,

screaming at the monsters behind the mirror

Contemporary Horizon (Contemporan Orizont Literar) is a European independent, bilingual (Romanian & English) and multicultural magazine of contemporary culture and spirituality that has published five of my poems in their November – December 2009 issue. The poems chosen by the magazine are;

• An Anonymous Unit, Southern Inner Sydney
• Life By Remote Control
• The Meanings of Life
• Elegy for the Lost; and
• Let Days To Rest

As this publication is not commonly available, the only way to obtain a copy is by contacting the editor-in-chief Daniel Dragomirescu at drgdaniel@yahoo.com , I have attached the proof sheets showing the poems translations into Romanian.

Contemporary Horizon – JACKSON,51-53