Featured Poem – Dali Clocks – from ‘Cider for the Wolves'

I wrote this poem inspired by the melting clocks of Salvador Dali’s iconic work. Sometimes I have a singular image in my mind that swirls around for hours or days, then when I sit down to write, the rest of the words seem to flow from somewhere deep inside of me that I don’t always have access to. I absolutely love the cathartic process of writing poetry, and hope you enjoy!

This is from a book I am about to publish this year called Cider for the Wolves! I recently read a few selections from it live at the Third Street Art Gallery’s Sum of Our Parts reception, and it was so lovely to share!

dali clocks
 

do the clocks in your home   

melt like dali clocks?   

 

how surreal the salt wound drips   

when given enough time  

 
I see the traces of oozing applesauce   

and the hollow crown ground   

feels as soft as marshmallows   

as they melt  

in the orange tang sunlight  

of the sand dunes   

 
in the afternoon  
kangaroo pouches drip sands of time  
orangutans are armed 
and always dangerous   

even though the last time you saw one   

it was sweeping its house for company  

 
use tools  

use chopsticks  

use notebooks  
journal down the summer lightbox   

and drill deeper   

into the space  

where the light leaves the cracks  

 
it's fine that these things  

are always staying on the sidewalk  

cardboard boxes  

left on the doorstep by the mailman 

  
wild dogs and large ant armies   

are the first ones on the scene   

when the train tracks collide with the trains  

when they crash  

their rolling cheese wheels  

into the copper penny  

that never saw it coming  

 
whistle rings  

and shots like fire  

ate the cracker canyon walls  

 
how selfish, how satisfying  
to keep the change for yourself 

however flattened  

If you’d like to explore my other poetry books, check them out here. Many are also available now for free on Kindle Unlimited, so there are lots to explore!