Two poems
Temple of Stars
Causation
Dana Curtis
"Metamorphosis II" by Peggy Stieler Wahrmund; cotton; 57 7⁄8 x 39 1⁄4 in.; 1990-91; open source from the Smithsonian American Art Museum
Temple of Stars
Flowers and birds collaborate
to create new constellations
for this newly molded world,
radiant and empty. Welcome,
I whisper in my most
sinuous voice. I imagine you
will finally hear me
at the crossroads with all
its pretty crosses made of
frost and permanence. You are not
mine in the rain, lost again
amid all that we began.
There is a slight sense of
longing, regret, and distance:
we will no longer look
for boxes full of night
and promise.
Causation
I walked down a light studded sidewalk, tearing
heavy air into tiny pieces of crystal, scattering
them like glitter. You want to know when
to begin and I want to remember what to call you
in this morning of orange ice and careful
remnants of the god yet to arrive: the shrine is simply
not good enough. We have offended and
the world is taking tickets for our finale; I feel
you near me, beside something bottomless that is not
a well or an ocean or a sky. Our creations
are water eyed and caustic. Our intentions are not
real in this wheat field full of hungry artifacts
not yet conceived. I have many questions for this
new deity: did I invent the flowers in your hair?
Was I the one who buried cities with my cells? Who
are you to emerge from a mirror and put on
feathers and stars, hemlock and ash?
Flowers and birds collaborate
to create new constellations
for this newly molded world,
radiant and empty. Welcome,
I whisper in my most
sinuous voice. I imagine you
will finally hear me
at the crossroads with all
its pretty crosses made of
frost and permanence. You are not
mine in the rain, lost again
amid all that we began.
There is a slight sense of
longing, regret, and distance:
we will no longer look
for boxes full of night
and promise.
Causation
I walked down a light studded sidewalk, tearing
heavy air into tiny pieces of crystal, scattering
them like glitter. You want to know when
to begin and I want to remember what to call you
in this morning of orange ice and careful
remnants of the god yet to arrive: the shrine is simply
not good enough. We have offended and
the world is taking tickets for our finale; I feel
you near me, beside something bottomless that is not
a well or an ocean or a sky. Our creations
are water eyed and caustic. Our intentions are not
real in this wheat field full of hungry artifacts
not yet conceived. I have many questions for this
new deity: did I invent the flowers in your hair?
Was I the one who buried cities with my cells? Who
are you to emerge from a mirror and put on
feathers and stars, hemlock and ash?
About the Author
Dana Curtis’ fourth book of poetry, Directed by Lilly Obscure, is due out from BlazeVOX Books in 2023. Her third full-length collection, Wave Particle Duality, was published by Blazevox Books in 2017. Her second collection, Camera Stellata, was published by CW Books, and her first book, The Body's Response to Famine, won the Pavement Saw Press Transcontinental Poetry Prize. Her work has appeared in such publications as Ploughshares, Hotel Amerika, Indiana Review, Colorado Review, and Poetry Northwest.
About the Work
Temple of Stars: "I’ve written several Temple poems. In many ways, all my poems are Temple poems. I think most people agree that all poetry is spiritual, either overt or covert. Whether you believe in the soul or not, it sits at the heart of every poem, every creative endeavor. I spend way too much time looking at the sky, so Temple of Stars was necessary and inevitable."
Causation: “Causation” imagines a god of cause and effect. Of course, this God is not happy with the human race. Eventually, we will have to deal with this God; we will be required accept and remedy our many offenses against ourselves and the world. And if there is no remedy, who knows? I’m sure it won’t be good. This poem is confession and supplication.
About the Author's Process
"As for my process in general, my basic physical process can begin in a few ways. Sometimes, a line occurs to me and I follow it wherever it takes me. However, there are some poems, usually long ones, that required a lot of planning, forethought, and sometimes, research. My next book, Directed by Lilly Obscure, is transgenre with its main focus on movies. I watched a lot, I read a lot, and discovered both the insistence and illusion of genre. Everyone’s process is their own; there is no right or wrong. Usually, the work makes the decisions, and I am dragged along whether I want to go or not. I accept it; I can’t live without it."
Dana Curtis’ fourth book of poetry, Directed by Lilly Obscure, is due out from BlazeVOX Books in 2023. Her third full-length collection, Wave Particle Duality, was published by Blazevox Books in 2017. Her second collection, Camera Stellata, was published by CW Books, and her first book, The Body's Response to Famine, won the Pavement Saw Press Transcontinental Poetry Prize. Her work has appeared in such publications as Ploughshares, Hotel Amerika, Indiana Review, Colorado Review, and Poetry Northwest.
About the Work
Temple of Stars: "I’ve written several Temple poems. In many ways, all my poems are Temple poems. I think most people agree that all poetry is spiritual, either overt or covert. Whether you believe in the soul or not, it sits at the heart of every poem, every creative endeavor. I spend way too much time looking at the sky, so Temple of Stars was necessary and inevitable."
Causation: “Causation” imagines a god of cause and effect. Of course, this God is not happy with the human race. Eventually, we will have to deal with this God; we will be required accept and remedy our many offenses against ourselves and the world. And if there is no remedy, who knows? I’m sure it won’t be good. This poem is confession and supplication.
About the Author's Process
"As for my process in general, my basic physical process can begin in a few ways. Sometimes, a line occurs to me and I follow it wherever it takes me. However, there are some poems, usually long ones, that required a lot of planning, forethought, and sometimes, research. My next book, Directed by Lilly Obscure, is transgenre with its main focus on movies. I watched a lot, I read a lot, and discovered both the insistence and illusion of genre. Everyone’s process is their own; there is no right or wrong. Usually, the work makes the decisions, and I am dragged along whether I want to go or not. I accept it; I can’t live without it."
