The Intangibles
By Elaine Equi
4/5
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About this ebook
Equi is, in Guernica's words, "not a poet’s poet and not a people’s poet, and yet she is both." That combination of technical prowess and engagement with accessibility makes her very much like Ron Padgett—someone whose work can be appreciated by all.
The present—as it is expressed it through ads, social media, consumer culture, food, pills, and entertainment—is woven with the small moments of the everyday here, effortlessly tying the post-modern with the personal.
Equi’s poetry examines complex ideas with a light touch, playfulness, and grace, and is both casual and incisive at once. Her work is funny and subtle and confident—her humor is a real and charming entry point.
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Book preview
The Intangibles - Elaine Equi
The Secret of Time Meets a Stranger
You look familiar.
Were you once my mother?
My child that slept through the Ice Age?
That song you were whistling —
where did you learn it?
Time passes, but the past will not stay behind,
and the future keeps rushing back
in search of a button it lost in the mist.
Who can say if it is better to wind up a clock
than to wind up a mammal?
In Newton’s day, time was seen as an arrow.
The arrow turned into a river.
The river stopped at a diner.
I’m there now, drinking a cup of coffee, writing a poem
called The Secret of Time Meets a Stranger.
Somehow, I always knew you would come.
The God Molecule
Scientists have discovered
is like a thickening agent
added to electrical soup.
From it came all manner
of matter in infinite sizes,
shapes, and colors. In malls
across the multiverse
our planet is known to have
the best shopping around.
God appears in myriad forms,
but does s/he really care
what story we buy into?
Poised between chaos and
intelligent design, it turns
out the molecule could
support either theory.
God’s own benevolent
way of saying whatever.
The Intangibles
Step right up and speak into the void.
Prove you’re not a robot.
Answer the question:
What color is the silver basket?
Enter the sequence of numbers
written in the sky.
Look past the dazzling confounds.
Move to the high percolations
at the edge of
Why?
I write to impersonate words and give them a more human quality.
I write so I can taste test a word for myself.
I write to discover what can only be said in the moment —
because it is — no matter how stupid or obvious that sounds.
I write because it’s an inexpensive habit — except in terms of time.
I write because I can’t sing.
I write to embellish facts.
I write to spite an old nun who punished me for telling the truth by
having me write I will not tell lies
one hundred times.
I write because certain combinations of words really are magical.
I write to create a body of