Cockatoos
my eyes caress his limbs
diaphanous droplets
glisten like a crown on the canopy
I press against the cool bark
from the valley floor
whee-la whee-la
whee-la
a mournful cry that has
circled all day
bringing more makarra
some land heavy
loosen the jewels
that shower down
onto the nape of my neck
others crack pinecones
a glimpse of a yellow blush cheek
I eavesdrop on clicks and chatter
envious of their gentle allopreening
as they leave
believing I can touch their sombre underbellies
reach out
I am home
First Day Back
fizz and spark of the holidays is
tamped by the pings of emails, all urgent
dull buzz of incoming texts and missed calls
just like that, misophonia is back
I become raw, red, sore
trapped looking at a square screen
tethered to a square desk
behind a square window
rain taps against the leaves
turning the Lomandra into ribbons of polished greenstone
new soft leaves of the callistemons turn silver
delicate droplets glisten
I stand up, climb out
my scaffold, Callistemon
I kick off my sandals
wet leaves sticky
laying down in the foliage
rain spots my skin
first, it’s cold, but the longer I stay
I settle
drenched, it is hard to tell
where the body ends, and the earth begins
the soaked soil, a fatty balm
I climb back through the window and into to sleep
Curtain
TV’s neon eye blinks
sending light around the room
a sour smell of a dog’s underbelly
whisper of cool air across my feet
rest of my body, hot
tongue coated in gin
dog stirs, so does he, lying beside me
sheer curtain rises
draws back on the breeze
it is thattime of night
across the street, top apartment light flicks on
I make my way to the window
sheet around my shoulders drops
stay just long enough
until the light flicks off
before the dog moves
and he wakes
Unfinished
cool damp air
finds bare thighs
warm palms slide
my hands dig deep
into sandstone grit
last of the light
lilac shadows
contours of
armpits and pelvic bone
I take Country home to bed
in my hair and on the soles of my feet
