Crispin Rodrigues (b. 1988)
SELECTED POEMS
If you are reading this somewhere else
(For Jocelyn, Pamela, Dustin, Gwyneth, Al, Min, Shuang, Xiao Ting, Qamar, Natalie, Elizabeth, Paul, Kendrick, Jerome)
Let it be known that there are poets
preening your home for you, mowing the lawn,
arranging your books alphabetically,
then messing up the order, because yours is
more important. If there is sand between
your toes, feel each grain for its unique
roundness. If you are in an empty apartment,
fill it with postcards from us. If you are in a hotel
and don't know what to do, fill the room with scribbles
drawn from photographs and pamphlets. If you
are not here with us, then you are here in words
and yodels of verses. You, for whom this island
is no longer yours, create with me afresh
another of our making, of silken strands and
bullet casings, of late-night calls and last-minute emails.
Most importantly, keep your bottles after you drink them,
so that our words may meet on the evening tide.
by Crispin Rodrigues
from The Nomad Principle (2019)
