I grew up in a small seaside town near Auckland and currently live in Wellington where I am studying poetry at Whitireia Polytechnic under the tutelage of Hinemoana Baker. I have previously published my work in Sidestream, Pulp Magazine and 4th Floor.
10,000 feet
Spiraling down to a green pin
the slim halo of her breath
out of reach on my neck
I see a fan of old coral heads
bleached and browned at the river mouth
a pog of kunekunes
scratching for fire ants in sand.
*
Spelling “ether” on the mirror
somehow evaporating to wet heat.
A dog roaming outside
sniffs at a burnt-out shack
and a cockerel arcs his throat
stakes a claim
in this small stream of ether.
*
Strapped to my back and framing with my feet
a volcanic drill-bit slowly
revolving she says
specialise in something
people who do not work here
go mad.
