Elan Mudrow
Smidgens
The Floor Is So Cold Tonight
The floor is so cold tonight
The dust scurries, moves, hides
My palm takes the pulse of linoleum
Wax, dirt, desire, finish, surface, sealer
Remnants of shine, all but a bug skeleton speck
We were the warmth, the life, struggle, the stumble
Laying here, cold floor moved into heat, a ghost sheen
I turn my palm upwards, as if to control something gone
Wasn’t the air the heaviest that night? It pressed us down
What we left is now unlocked—floorless space, — abandoned
The floor is so cold tonight
As if it has misplaced the words
My spine. I cannot lay flat upon you
Your plastic skin has been manufactured
Pain was not real, that night, or any other night
Only the imprints of our bodies, evaporating quickly
Lost all signs, signifiers, meaning and meat, bone and skin
We are a candy wrapper skinned sweet, scent of survival absurd
We could not stay here, it isn’t ours, it belongs to the larger rooms
Tile that mingles, inner juices hold the universe at bay, floor is spinning
The floor is so cold tonight
My feet are getting dirtier, dirtier
We cleaned together, clung, to our heavyness
I am a crumpled paper, phone number named me
Our bodies—gravity, whirled—beneath the skin, floor
Sunk, muscle—pushed up, propping my arm upon you
We came here for the moments, motions, our starving plans
Pieces of tile, adhered, adorned, measured, while yet becoming
Worlds are found in rooms, they are claws scratching the flooring
We remember the feeling of the room, the air, our bodies, the cool, cool, cool, cool
Glancing at that picture while reading those first words was almost hypnotic. Awesome.
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Reblogged this on Music is Real and commented:
Touching!
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I love the structure of this poem…it adds to the ‘jaggedness’ of it. The line “We are a candy wrapper skinned sweet, scent of survival absurd” gives insane imagery (plus contrast of candy versus peeling of skin) and the dissonance used hear is just so easy and beautiful to read, it’s effortless.
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Thanks!
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Agreed
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A very powerful and moving poem, and heart-rending, but your emotion didn’t take from your structural control or skill. wonderful stuff!
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Excellent! Love the contrast between the photos and symbology of the floor.
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Very Cool!!
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So very excellent. I love the line I…a crumpled paper, phone number named me. If I could speak in feelings then I could say how your poetry impacts me. ❤
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You have just spoken to me in feelings. Thanks so much.
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Deeply moving and magnificent
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Thanks for following my blog, and for letting me in on the poetic awesomeness that’s going on here. If the pictures aren’t intriguing enough, the words are downright mesmerizing. I’m looking forward to ongoing raptness. =)
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I love the diction in this piece. Absolutely riveting imagery.
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I love this poem of yours. Not only the way you write it so beautiful, but I noticed that it is almost stairs-like phrases written on the page as if you paint it that way. 🙂
Lovely!
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Loved this poem – edgy, emotional, wonderfully descriptive. I could feel myself lying on the floor!
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This is soulful. I felt every line!
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I enjoyed this poem.
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So glad I found your blog. Your poetry is raw and deliciously real. “My palm takes the pulse of linoleum,” love this line!
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Thanks
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Considerable write, in both contrasting images and imagery and format -they all worked with those killer thoughts and your uniqueness.
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