Poem: roadworthy
This week’s Poet’s Corner contribution is from Ben Adams of Adelaide.
roadworthy
he’s cracked, some rusting chassis
of a mind that sits on blocks, clapped-out
with borrowed talking points
that hang like long expired Little Trees
from the rear-view mirror
he’d like to take a picture, see himself
as fact, but radio static – somehow still running
distracts and his fingers feel
for the tuning knob, pure synecdoche
of the past
he turns it left, then right, then further
he does not think
is this what they mean by idle hands?
as the acid-hooked machine spits out
a preacher, then classical, then classic-rock
You might like
he is pleased
and fiddles the ignition
pushes buttons to see what works
a piece of creaking, tortured metal
an engine desperate to combust
Ben Adams is a writer, servo-clerk, research assistant and festival cash wrangler with honours in History and English. His poems have appeared in various print and online publications, featured in the 2018 ‘Raining Poetry in Adelaide’ street-art project, and at Quart Short Collective’s reading nights. He has featured with Paroxysm Press for their regular spoken word event ‘Spoke N Slurred’, and their ‘Showcase’ series at the 2019 Adelaide Fringe. Also in 2019, ‘Eclectica Magazine’ published his personal essay ‘A Radical Liberalism’, and his first poetry collection ‘A Synonym for Sobriety’ was published following it winning that year’s Friendly Street Single Poet Competition. Ben can be found at Facebook.com/bts.adams.
Readers’ original and unpublished poems of up to 40 lines can be emailed, with postal address, to [email protected]. Submissions should be in the body of the email, not as attachments. A poetry book will be awarded to each accepted contributor.