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Contributor Series 6: A Currency of Words, The Descent


10.09.10 Posted in Contributor Series 6, today's words by

It’s been a great series, and it all wraps up tonight! 


Contributor Series 6: A Currency of Words
The Descent
By Joseph Murphy

As evening drew up I lingered outside,
Waiting for what might jump 
From mind to page.

I must wake the slumbering body of these words.

A stirring has begun!

At my feet, a willful phase
Reshapes a patch of light:
In a thought or two, it’s become a door
I swing open.

Down I go.

I enter a grand chamber:
Clouds protrude from roots; flesh and leaf
Reflect identical images.

Shaping my language into a ladder, I descend further.

It’s quiet this far down. Still. Lovely.
I just breathe. Perfect.

But I must return.
I’m not yet ready for such peace. I can’t stop
Pestering my words: tapping them
On the shoulder; sorting 
Through their memories; unfolding
Their maps.


That Summer Storm (July 2010) was the most recent poem by Joseph Murphy to appear at vox poetica.



2 Responses to “Contributor Series 6: A Currency of Words, The Descent”

  1. bobbie troy says:

    Great imagery.

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