Roll on | Paul Brucker

for Jennie Jones

Roll on, dark blue sea
Dash along surfaces of the deep
Browse upon verges of pasture

From the quiet intensity of the inaugural harp
to the energetic finale of the horn

Dancers take hands, go round twice,
then back again
Now turn, now repeat, arms and all,
leading forward, then leading back

Roll on until loud voices go soft,
until silence descends
on the organ grinder, the street preacher,
the medicine man

Roll on as the mouth is pursed,
the tongue is shown
and one or both lips are drawn over the teeth

Roll, as another noun phrase is born from a noun
and leaves re-arrange themselves on plant stems
based on this equation or that equation
despite vague movements to the contrary

Continue to roll on though a man falls
into a cranny and finds there’s nothing he can do
to help himself

Roll, as eyes descend from the hills,
poverty waltzes through the door
and night longs to call it a night

Roll while there’s still time
for new ideas, new identities,
new hope

Before the moon is too tired to roll any further
and decides it’s time to turn into a turtle
once more forevermore

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©2023 Paul Brucker
All rights reserved

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