Owen Bullock: OUT OF THE VALLEY

1.

just about to take off
an autumn leaf
lands on the windscreen

The red echo. The purple glance. The orange hope. The yellow pun.

road trip
in the pause
at the intersection
birdsong

A bumpy road for ten Ks then a sign that says bumpy road. One side of the track washed out. The one lane bridge flooded. In the steep-sided valley a magpie’s call echoes like several magpies.

2.

on the day I have to
go into the school
it’s raining heavily
so my tears don’t show

I make a list of men I admire and their qualities. For the first time, I feel proud to be a man.

shadow
beside the parking lines—
the sign you don’t read

In the supermarket, my partner talks with an ex-work acquaintance without introducing me. It doesn’t matter, I commune with the other men in the store.

above the shopping complex
the wind wand *
and an empty flag pole

* A sculpture by Len Lye.

by Owen Bullock
New Plymouth, New Zealand