Anna Couani #110 after Ritsos

the day sidetracked

the glittering grooves

of the small ginger grater

nestled in the drawer

sounds have volume

the late afternoon quiet

in space

criss-crossed by children’s voices

around us now outside of school

we don’t have the occasional dog bark

or rooster crowing

suggests something missing

since the corella’s have gone

longing for a blue butterfly

on a white daisy

days of looking into the ashes

nights of warming at the flames

the sunset colouring the monitor

wistful in the autumn dusk

we have mostly asphalt

not fields or meadows

paddocks or lawns

leaving us with a longing

for the grass burning yellow green

under the trees

the tired tradesmen sit in a circle

after a day of installation

of the new system of sandwich panel walls

sit for hours talking quietly

and the video guy we call Einstein

just because of his hair

at the local coffee shop, smoking

as usual

two women chat in the corner shop

with the shopkeeper

call across to someone in the pub

on the other corner

the shopkeeper standing behind the counter

draped with the Australian flag

a Lebanese gesture

what you have to do these days

leaning on the shadow of the mimosa

our neighbour pierces us with a glance

sharp but friendly

analytical

why should we look beyond

or name the pictures in the coffee cup    

(with reference to Seconds by Yannis Ritsos (1988-89) trans. Antigone Kefala)

Carol Archer/Anna Couani collaborative postcard