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Dreams of the Flower by Traci Harrison

"DREAMS OF THE FLOWER"
copyright 2006 by TRACI HARRISON

I Will Open The Window Onto Spring That I Want Eternal

A poem by Geraldine Green

~ after Leon Gontran Damas

i will name the unnamed mountains
i will open the moon onto the waters of itself.
i will break open the greyblue powder that holds the light
that shines on us as we gaze at the moon.
o moon! with your great one eye open
i will break open my chest for you to rip out my heart.
i will open you moon, to the window of your great grey eye
i will shout to people in the street at equinox and solstice
and night fall and day—breaking open fall and winter fall
and trout fall and sea foaming over coffee cups fall
and the boiling of milk fall and the breaking down of women
fall and the kneeling fall and the cries of children fall i will
break open the hearts of many when you open and close
your great grey eye and blink and know who i am.

Copyright 2006 by Geraldine Green

Geraldine Green Geraldine writes:
The rhythm of this phrase by Leon Gontran Damas acted as a trigger line for me. Then, as I sat at this computer, looking out onto the Cumbrian Fells, I thought: What else will I do? And the first line came to mind. I write very fast, using free associations, going with it, juxtaposing unusual images together without questioning their source. Afterwards I go back and edit. I'm interested in deep imaging—or cante jondo—deep song, that Lorca wrote so beautifully.

Geraldine Green is from Cumbria, UK, with Irish roots. Her first collection, The Skin, was published in 2002 by Flarestack. She graduated in 2005 with an MA (Distinction) in Creative Writing, Lancaster University. Green runs writing workshops and is a tutor for Continuing Education, Lancaster University. Her second collection, Passio, was published in April 2006 (by Flarestack); she's currently working on her third collection. Her work has been published in the UK, Italy, and America. Geraldine's poetry has appeared in Obsessed with Pipework, Rain Dog, Neon Highway, Smoke, Citizen 32, Envoi, as well as US online magazines Out of Order, Poetry Bay, and Mountain Voices. She is an Associate Editor of Poetry Bay (Editor, George Wallace). Geraldine can be reached via email at: Geraldinegreen1@aol.com.

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