The Confines
It is
a glamour, this
being trapped
inside without
the sensing of
an outer shell.
Im-
measurable.
Direction-
less.
Who cast the — who
cares? It’s where
you find yourself.
*
Although told
otherwise
there are
ways out. It’s
just that
finding them requires
a knowledge of the
arcane that is
rarely found.
*
& in
addition needs
an essential ability
to mix &
match the elementals,
to pick the ones
with most efficacy, to
point them in
the right direction.
& still
the element
of chance has
final say.
*
Too many
necessary things
you can’t control.
*
Cartesian co-
ordinates, the
oestrus cycle
of monotremes,
the light denying
pictographs the time
to form in
distant galaxies.
*
So why not trust
entirely to luck, make
do with what you’ve
got or what comes
easily to hand?
The roads
are full of debris.
*
Each piece
contains
a measure of
sympathetic magic.
Marsupial bones, the
coloured earth beside
the bitumen, the flowers
that are growing there.
*
Include the artificial.
Shredded rubber
broken glass
a snapped aerial
a piece of mirror
in which the past
reflects the future.
*
All have to do
with traveling.
Put together
they might
provide a path
to get you
out of here.
*
Trust in them
anyway. It’s what
maps are for.