The interior love poem
the deeper levels of the selfdates when the abandonment
of certain principles occurredThe role of courtesy—how to enter
a forest, how to touch
a master’s feet before lesson or performanceThe art of the drum. The art of eye-painting.
How to cut an arrow. Gestures between lovers.
The pattern of teeth marks on skin
drawn by a monk from memoryThe limits of betrayal. The five ways
a lover could mock an ex-loverThe skill in tentative messages
which included yes and no
but never the direct maybeNine finger and eye gestures
to signal key emotionsThe small boats of solitude
Lyrics that rose
from love
back into airnaked with guile
and praiseOur works and days
We knew how monsoons
(south-west, north-east)
would govern behaviourand when to discover
the knowledge of the deadhidden in clouds
in rivers, in unbroken rockAll this was burnt
or traded for power and wealth
from the eight compass points of vengeancefrom the two levels of envy
Keep Up
Keep Up
‘Feelings can be very obscure but numbers never lie.’
Kevin Brazil on metrics, obsession and fitness.
Keep Up
‘An intense workout is an ecstasy of punishment packaged as self-improvement.’
Mary Wellesley on exercise, ritual and Barry’s Bootcamp.
Keep Up
‘I was not good at sports because I would not do sports because I did not have the body for sports because I would not do sports.’
Saba Sams on girlhood, embodiment and avoiding sports.
Keep Up
‘Following United rarely brings me any great joy and most often it depresses me. If I could disengage, I would.’
Jonny Thakkar on Manchester United.
Keep Up
‘I deployed my body against an opponent like a blunt and effective instrument.’
John Patrick McHugh on playing Gaelic football.
