# 01 DJs At Drive-time
When he
died
My
grandfather left
A vinyl
stack
Of wild
sound
In his
‘office’
That place
where
Discarded
men find
Themselves
listening
To the
radio, mostly
In
backyards
Of outer
surburbia
An
unparalleled universe
Of the
static
Produced by
waves
Of daily
living
Until
transmission ends
My
grandfather preferred
Hearing
improv jazz
While he
fashioned
A miracle
from
Any
discarded thing
Understanding
its need
To live
again
Turned and
returned
With sound
qualities
Drifts of
familiarity
And
resonant charm
To be
remembered
And even
useful
Outside,
the roses
Did not
know
Where to
look
Their faces
open
Perhaps in
shock
Waves of
air
Tromboning
the expected
Grace of
gardens
Out of
order
But my
grandfather
Knew how to
Subvert the
suburbs
Converting
the air
One
revolution
At a time
Jazz
strained, pulled
Leapt from
windows
Like Yves
Klein
From that
wall
And my
grandfather
Was always
there
Tapping
nails, wood
And his
feet
In the dust
Where I am
Sitting now
hearing
A car
arrive
Its radio doofing
Some
generic chant
My
grandfather refused
To let in
To his
system
Of sound
making
As he built
Another
world far
More experimental
than
Switching
DJs
At drive-time.
cw '16
Knew how to
ReplyDeleteSubvert the suburbs
Converting the air
One revolution
At a time
nice writing - he sounds wonderful Cecilia :)
Thanks Efi. Yes, we are often blessed with wonderful people in our lives x
DeleteHallo Cecilia. Wonderful poem.
ReplyDeleteMany thanks, Liz.
DeleteGreat. It made me think of my father who could return mechanical things to life.
ReplyDeleteThanks Robbie - so glad it resonates with you x
ReplyDeleteHi Susan, your grandfather sounds wonderful! x
ReplyDeleteIt was my father. He once pulled apart a header (for wheat harvesting) and put it all back together again. Like a giant meccano set!
ReplyDeleteSeeing a puzzle come back to life is wonderful. Your Dad sounds like he had a love of movement and appreciation of usefulness. Isn't it interesting how those gestures and approaches to living remain with us in such positive ways.
ReplyDelete