i. Australian English
The water

we drink from the tap

is the same

warder

who keeps us all jailed —

in drought.


ii. Balancing Act
The body understands

first hand the gravity

of its position.


iii. Intent …
Do you know

what the last word

of your sentence will be

when you open your mouth

to speak?


iv. Her Clumsiness
Like fingers fallen

into the wrong hands.


v. His Sweatheart
The sweat stain

on the back of his green T-shirt —

an almost perfect

heart.


vi. Another Beautiful Loser
Only the rain

knows how to celebrate

its downfall.


vii. Dangerman
I see the crashes

up and down the scarparks

of his arms.


viii. Negative Growth (After Adam Zagajewski)
In the car park

cigarette butts grow,

not daisies.


ix. Sonic Simile
The drip of a tap:

a blind woman’s stick

on bone-dry footpaths.


x. False Generosity
Like a dead battery,

free of charge.


xi. Beneath Agitation Hill
White faces in a wet tent.
They flinch in the rain

at a painted face,

a red head-band, the glimpse

of a spear. Feel them flinch

in their trenches,

the chill thought

of gold behind them —
living, steadying.


xii. Loyalty
Do sunflowers

turn their heads

from a full moon?


xiii. That Girl’s Clear Eyes
for Tiara
You outstare skies

with those

wideopen

video eyes.