Saturday 9 August 2014

The Prosthetic Alphabet

A is a metal spider claw in the brickwork
B is full with sperm
C sweeps nestlings from the ground
D is a well without a bucket
E is a rooftop of turrets clogged with birds and frogs
F is a broken wall in a bomb crater
G holds kittens underwater
H pins legs to a table while fixing arms to the light fittings
I is a crowbar
J dredges oysters
K is a monkey in a burning tree
L will catch all the falling
M is a glasshouse frame, its windows broken by escaping plants
N is an iron lightning bolt
O is an astrolabe
P holds her breasts as she floats in the water
Q is an eye floating up from the depths
R is caught in the swirling strands of reeds with the eels
S winds wool in the hair
T is a piton hammered into a rockface
U will hang above the door to mark where the horse kicked
V splits water with a bank of sand
W is a hedge of hurdles
X holds itself open to all suggestions
Y is a funnel that brings all roads together
Z is a tapeworm coiled into a cough