Three Water Poems

by the Editorial Staff of Uncanny Valley Magazine

All of the Earth's Liquid

by Alexis Faulkner

 

Today South Carolina is

Submerged in the world’s greatest indicator of

Well-being

There is no greater pull on my conscience

Than the ocean

Large waves against earth walls

I dream about running

Sprinting down splintered piers

Wood breaks apart as my bare toes lift off each board

Falling away behind me

Leave me to a dark sea in the middle of nothing

Peace be the spirit that water dedicates

To the human body

Memory

Repetitive motion, please wake us when

The waves are coming on too strong

Water forces us to stay present

To look at the fortune consumed, the resources

We must stand near the ancient cycle of movement

Eyes open and waiting for our turn to swim

It is easy to feel large on the land

It is easy to be lost in the sea


Kill Van Kull
by Chris Alarie

The divide between where I am now
And where I would like to be
Doesn't seem to be as wide as the bay
Between Oakland & San Francisco
It's more like the Kill Van Kull
Or even the estuary
Between Oakland & Alameda
But the bridge is gone                      
And I can't swim                     
(That is a lie. I can swim.
I just can't swim very well.)

Oh sure, NASA can find
Evidence of water on Mars
But I can't find a god damn job

Open Container Ordinance

by Douglas Slayton 

i know i don't
but have been saying for so long
i need it to sleep
when i have slept every night regardless
if i lay here long enough
i just want all of this to be over
even if just for an hour

and in the morning
water pours over me
filling every empty space
left in the interim

for that moment i am fresh or new
or whole
even if just for a moment
again

Photo by Alexis Faulkner

Alexis Faulkner is Executive Editor-in-Chief of Uncanny Valley Magazine. 
Chris Alarie is Senior Editor-in-Chief of Uncanny Valley Magazine.
Doug Slayton is Professor Editor-in-Chief of Uncanny Valley Magazine.