Rochelle Owens: 'Beloved the Aardvark'
A new poem with author's comments
The letters horizontal
or vertical f l o a t before
your eyes
a black line shapes itself
spells out the first noun in
an english dictionary
with a forefinger and thumb
spells out A a r d v a r k
an animal from Africa
body of data data of body
rabbitlike ears a long cylindrical
tongue
the tail of a kangaroo
nocturnal burrowing a member
of the mammalian order
made of the parts
of different animals lay your hand
feel the bones under the skin
*
The universe contains
everything that exists letters
that spell out
r u i n s c a p e
end to end long strings
of words blinking in and out
as the universe contracts
e x p a n d s
across the twenty-first century
mounds of sand appear
disappear
always the Aardvark moves
in circles moves in circles
in the here and now 2
swaying side to side
massive the claws digging
searching
work is a binding obligation
a jaw opens and closes
carnal/spiritual
*
On a computer screen
reflections of water metal glass
bouncing radio waves
black lines form letters
precise methodical long strings
of words vertical/horizontal
words detached from
the course of events planned
or spontaneous patterns
spirals of wind and fire
zigzags of black and white lines
layers of brown dust
biomorphic geomorphic
polymorphic slashes slashes
of solar light
earth air fire water
motionless the Aardvark
stands listening blood in
blood out
*
Press button to see
Science and Art of creating
archetypal scenes
come into being
long ago an hour ago
only a minute 3
known and unknown shapes
the flesh of the apple the dome
of a human skull
a mushroom cloud
each successive image
signs and wonders earth air
fire water
motionless the Aardvark
stands listening blood in
blood out
*
Press button to see
a bucolic setting grape vines
olive groves
fields of sunflowers
white the summer blossoms
a wedding party
the bride and groom pale
and red his lips her breast vein
as thick as a finger
out of his mouth
protrudes his tongue cinnamon cumin
honey and salt
lines of insects appear
disappear tendons and nerves
pulsate
a flow of hormonal forces
blood in blood out the universe
contracting
e x p a n d i n g
an outline shapes itself
playful the unborn babe in its
amniotic sac 4
*
Always the Aardvark
moves in circles moves in circles
in the here and now
earth air fire water
moves in circles swaying
side to side rhythmic the blood
the months in a year
disease famine torture war
mounds of sand appear disappear
massive the claws
digging searching long ago
an hour ago
only a minute
*
On a warm day in spring
a woman plays a harpsichord
the lid painted with scenes
of mythological animals
known and unknown shapes
nocturnal solitary
black zigzags
appear disappear motionless
the Aardvark stands
listening a jaw opens
and closes audible inaudible
the sound of the predator
lay your hand
feel the bones under the skin
carnal/spiritual
Author’s comment: “To look at the image of an Aardvark is to take a cosmic Rorschach test, and like a cubist mural is both a microcosm and macrocosm. You understand Intuitively — a Cartesian resolution of body and spirit. The poem presented here is the first of a series of poems titled ‘Beloved the Aardvark,’ related I suppose to the poem ‘Devour Not the Elephant’ that appeared earlier in Poems and Poetics.” — Rochelle Owens
Poems and poetics