Saturday, January 20, 2018

Ian Humphreys #3 - Wide Asleep





wide asleep

active imagination requires a state of reverie
half-way between sleep and waking
- Carl Jung


the antique wardrobe is shut snug     like
            the brass wings of its butterfly hinges
                        silk-drapes buff its cool veneer
            as they flutter
                        at the open window

in drifts a moth     on a bedtime prayer
            it puppet-strings round the room
                        before settling
            like grey dust
                        on the wardrobe’s mirrored doors

twitching antennae itch the gloom
            with sonar     spook the dog
                        send it tunnelling under eiderdown
            a small key turns in its sleep
                        unlocking the yap of a fox in the yard

stretching awake     the wardrobe yawns open
            glinting hinges unfold into the moon’s half-light
                        to a sonata of stray whimpers &
            trombone snores
                        tiny screws squeak loose

the moth whirrs through naphthalene vapour
            just before the crack of glass     on parquet
                        the clockwork clink of wings
            as six brass butterflies
                        burst into the cocoon of night

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