Pigs in Night-Town

The split hoof. I never realised that ya would take my wages. Did ya think I'd never find yer little eyes shining there? Ah, the human skin of ya. So deceiving. So soft, with hairs.

Against the fire, it all turns to hard bristles.

Look at the dark cobbles, all glistening and slippery underfoot. Burlesque, ya spin and twirl, make faces at windows. Dance under light and fiery abandon. Two Irish notes for ya my boy. That will make ya pay. Ya can't take moy money as I'll take yours alright, my laddy. I shall set the dogs on ya. I really shall. Their fangs will bite at ya! See ya run thar my boy. Down on yar knees! Yagh scurvy thing! I'll show ya some thing or two under here. Yarr don't take from me boy.

And then the light on the back of the neck. It changes everything.

The Word Pages

The word pages are all gone,
They were all taken away and destroyed.

The Dead.

The snow came down,
But only where it was created.

The Dead.

How does it feel to take away the words?
The snow on your fingers.

The snow,
Only snow.

All of the hail-stone hellos,
All of the crystal frost.
All of the faces from The Dead.

Ah, they only find new places,
In the heart.

Flickering silver words in the heart.
Shake-domes of upside-down,
Sparkle.

You shall not find that there,
Only I shall see that.

The Dead.

Peeping

When I first met you down by the water I was slipping under the seaweed. Hiding. I dipped and slept in cave-pockets. I hid there. I was waiting for the ammonite swirl to twist and turn me over into the rock-pools of you. I was watching for you in the pink air.

Gradh, oh how it hurts. That Irish gradh. That lovely place that shimmers and shines. Take me back there in your velvet cloth wrap me up and take me back there. I'll cut you and break you but you'll always come back for more. Until morning takes the credit for all of this. You shall not be. You shall not be.

Pebbles. With the top notes of all of this. One day I shall sit here again with unfurled flags and round red-cheeked smiles. I want to take you in here with me. Once up there with Atlas I held you. I held the roundness of you and held you up when you needed it most. I didn't want to let go with shiny green wet sea. Gerty looked at me and held out her hands. I wanted to let go of you. But you never let go. I saw you in eyes in Trinity. Heads that dipped into books and followed words and fullstopspunctumtimeless. You are timeless.

Stop and camera.

I saw you in the Book of Kells staring back at me always. I wanted to paint gold in where your face was. Gold leaf for hair too. You deserved to be gold. I wanted to take you into blue sheets and put my face into your feet. I wanted to see the mothy morning through your toes. Just a trickle of toe-nail.

It was so new. So fresh. Back to bed. Soft, red Irish hair. I had a rose-red tint. I love you. Oh, how I love you.

I said that your head rested like an egg under my arm. I wrapped it around you and held you there forever. Even after all.