CLAUDINE NASH - POEMS

"Claudine Nash's poetry collections include her full-length book Parts per Trillion (Aldrich Press, 2016) and her chapbook The Problem with Loving Ghosts  (Finishing Line Press, 2014).  Her poems have won prizes from Avalon Literary Review and Eye on Life Magazine and have appeared in numerous publications including Asimov's Science Fiction, Cloudbank, Haight Ashbury Literary Journal and Yellow Chair Review amongst others. She also has a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology. Website: www.claudinenashpoetry.com."

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​                                  “Fine Print”
 
 
Warning: This memory may be habit forming. Abrupt discontinuation may lead to blunt appraisals of current life circumstances and a rebound of empty mood states. Prolonged exposure to this memory may result in rumination and habitual efforts at reenactment. Do not attempt complex mental operations while contemplating this memory as it has been known to twist once linear thought processes into spinning loops and circles. This memory may leave you washed in infinite need. Listlessness and aimless daydreams are common side effects of this recollection. Seek immediate medical attention should you experience persistent swelling of the heart lasting longer than reasonably expected for an otherwise rational being who indulges in reminiscence. In rare but serious cases sadly warped perceptions of reality have occurred after replaying this memory. Pursue distraction until you can taper yourself from this memory and tuck it back into a less intrusive or entirely overlooked recess.
 
 
 “Core”
 
 
Allow me to wash this
day from your skin;
with my fingers and
 
soapy palms wipe away
the moment you were so
wrongfully misplaced,
 
swap out the doubt that
leaks into the murky bath
for promise. Take this
 
spot where I kneel and
note the exquisite arcs
and angles of your mind. I
 
would spill this notion
sloppily onto the floor ten
thousand times over,
 
watch those who subdued
the spark in you slip by
as you bound brightly
 
off the curve. Let me empty
cup by cup this false
concept of you, pour it
 
into a moonless field,
onto a heap of stones
waiting to be scattered.


        “How to Come Full Circle in Five Steps, More or Less”
  
1. Return to the place
where you started
and feel hope rise
again like heat.
 
2. Though this spot
seemed so lost to you,
slip back seamlessly
into its loop. See how
its arc suits you,
how it fits and fills
the gaps and breaks,
all the empty inches
within you.
 
3. Now summon the day
the wind blew the musts
and shoulds,  the can’ts
and won’ts  away
from you. This is the
moment that marks
your re-beginning.
 
4. Lean forward and
draw on the past.
Make sure to send
yourself  this message
over and again,
on a rolled slip affixed
to tired carrier pigeon
or through the mint
leaves that swirl
through your cup.
 
5. Spin three sixty and
soak in the stunning cuts
of light that bound
about this sight. Throw
open your eyes
and find yourself in this
open aired-space
changed, the same,
gloriously reclaimed.
 

                                  “To the Moon”
 
 
May these second thoughts
be launched into
deep space
then ditched
in a pocket
of pure silence.
 
There, where
nothing vibrates,
their babble will
finally fall mute,
 
they will stop tying
my mind in circles.
 
Let them drift towards
a band of unnamed stars,
be lost between
celestial bodies.
 
May they find their tanks
emptied of oxygen
before they finish
their last sentence.
 

                              “A Kinder Suit”
 
 
This year I want
for nothing but
fabric,
 
a kinder cloth
to shield me against
these blistering
doubts.
 
I wish to shed
the thoughts I wear
as hair shirts,
 
toss on layers
of linen and
soft knits,
silks and lenient
fibers,
 
run my fingers
along each thread
then feel my mind
breathe freely.
 
By next season
I will allow the wind
to loosen the beliefs
that limit
my movement,
 
I will reach,
 
feel forgiveness
wrap around me
like skin.