Poem: Apprentice Piece
Poetry itself, by analogy and metaphor, is the subject of this week’s Poet’s Corner contribution from Ross Jackson.
Apprentice Piece
From root stock images
from words espaliered
I must make a lemon tree
for my poet’s apprentice piece
a hole will be dug for my lemon tree
dead centre of an old walled yard
with cut lengths of nylon tights
I will tension it as it grows
in pruning for shape
I shall retain within the full-grown tree
all those twiggy words:
stem, leaf, rind, tongue, tang, juice,
You might like
one late summer afternoon
fruit will appear out of
a blue hat full of sky
lying in pea straw
under acid green shade
and the snoring of sleepy bees
at my leisure I shall recite
my completed apprentice piece.
Ross Jackson is a retired teacher who lives with his wife and their companion dog in the Perth suburbs. He is a member of OOTA Poets, that has had a close association with the Fremantle Arts Centre since 1996. He is also a regular reader at the Fremantle monthly poetry event ‘Voicebox’, and has had his poetry published in literary journals in Australia, the UK, Ireland, Canada and New Zealand.