Three Poems by Johannes S.H. Bjerg

Litany

The thread of hearing

I

from the sound of falling buildings our bones are made
from the hardening of our bones envelops are made
from envelops the flight of swallows comes
the swallows leaving it behind
like threads that make up the weave of grief
from grief comes holes and blind fish
from blind fish gods spring
from blind gods descend the stairs we walk
when it's raining
from our walk is born the far end of dirt roads
from the rain is made windows and pain
and from windows bells manifest thus ending that line
from pain circular movement is made
from the sense of sight the color blue comes
and the sound of the flute
from the sound of flutes comes clouds
from clouds come time and feet
from feet comes sunsets
from sunsets come the mandrake plant
from the mandrake root comes screaming
and so does trees that grow when no one's watching

nothing of this is not sacred

II

from the moth-and-flame connection stones and rocks come forth
from rocks and stones four-winged insects
from four-winged insects the concept of future
and soft shoes and the tangible offspring
from soft shoes hope is made
and from tangible offspring the need to hold oneself
in the dark
comes
what springs from the concept of future no one knows
from the need to hold oneself in the dark
cities spring
from cities loneliness is made
and round fruits
(here endeth the line of loneliness)
from round fruits comes the sense of warmth
from the sense of warmth comes the birds named swan and sparrow
from swans and sparrow come prayer
from prayer comes the awareness of the other
from the other comes keys, keyholes and silk
with key and keyholes creation pauses

all is one
all has come

III

from silk comes green grasses and sweat
from green grasses come hills
from sweat comes penguins and the weight of absence
from hills spring forth that place where the hip and the thigh meet
and from there white roses come
from penguins come vending machines and from the weight of absence
poetry comes
from white roses comes dances and stringed instruments
and from poetry comes the fluff that will make dandelions
from dandelions come invincibility
from invincibility comes dances and stringed instruments comes hinges
from thence sugar and lizards
from sugar comes a high that's fun
from lizards comes the desire for power
from the desire for power comes the sound of falling buildings

and then it starts over

thus ends the first breath
and the thread of sound

nothing of this is not sacred



Litany

The thread of seeing

I

from the sight of flames comes oak trees
from oak trees come tinned beans and fingernails
from fingernails come, as the Edda says, ships
and from tinned beans come the obsession with lost love
thus endeth the lineage of tinned beans

from ships comes the four winds and their intercourse
from the intercourse of the winds come the ability
to remember songs
from the ability to remember songs horses are made
from horses come the sense of direction
from the sense of direction our brains are made
and from our brains slugs come
from slugs come paper
and
from paper comes nothingness and there it is

we are one
we have come

II

from the sight of waves our fingers are made
from our fingers clay is made
from clay is made bars and in bars plans are made
from plans come plains by fermentation
and from plains come loss
from loss comes maps and globes and string
and from maps and globes and string come cake
cake gives birth to rulers that don't smudge the drawing ink
and from rulers are born the loss of memory
from the loss of memory refrigerators are made
and from refrigerators camels spring
from camels speed
and from speed forgetfulness

[the reader will now cough]

nothing of this is not sacred

III

from the sight of burning eyes whales come
from whales screws and nails are born and all metallic things
that can go into walls
from screws and nails rivers are born and their unquenchable appetite
from rivers and their unquenched appetite the color yellow comes
and from the color yellow the wish for being somewhere else
from the wish of being somewhere else
flamingos are born

from flamingos sprouts things that go upwards
from things that go upward comes farmhouses and heavy chairs
from farmhouses comes long Sundays
but heavy chairs remain barren
from long Sundays comes eyebrows and hairs that grow in odd places
and they produce every name that begins with an A
which in turns gives rise to confusion
from confusion comes the beetle called a scarab
and from scarabs springs warm night
from warm night comes rail road tracks and all who follow them
and here resteth the lineage of the sight of whales

nothing of this is everything



Litany

The thread of smell

I

from the smelling of bumblebees' warm backs come our femurs
from our femurs come the names that begin with an I
from the names that begin with an I spring squirrels
and from thence machines that cut bread into even-sized slices
and from machines that cut bread into even-sized slices comes
transportation sickness
and from transportation sickness comes reeds
from reeds comes the need to be secure
and it in turn gives rise to bunions on our feet
from the bunions of our feet comes printing ink
and from printing ink comes crows
from crows come the notion that the horizon is where the world ends
and from thence comes chili
chili gives rise to things that go bump in the night
and from things that go bump in the night comes instant coffee
and that was a mistake

here we rest with our feet up

II

from smelling the whining sound in the right ear comes back pockets
from back pockets the need to explore space comes
and from thence paper clips
from paper clips the urge to scratch your scrotum (if you have one) arise
from the urge to scratch your scrotum (if you have one) comes hip-hop
and broken elastic bands
which remain barren
from hip-hop comes the need to settle on distant mountain tops
and from thence nail clipping devices
from nail clipping devices come the planets you cannot see
and from the planets you cannot see come photo-booths
from photo-booths comes acne
from acne to top of clouds come
and from the top of clouds we get our liver
from our liver the need to revise the signs of the zodiac comes
and from thence lemon squeezers
and from the spaces between tiles various mental disorders
now we breath
now we don't nothing of this is not sacred

III

from smelling various mental disorders we get strawberry licorice
from strawberry licorice we get the urge to talk to stones and household appliances
from thence we get the hair on our heads
from the hair on our heads we get bridges
and from bridges come nostalgia
from nostalgia comes 35 mm film (now a rarity)
and from 35 mm film comes the animal called giraffe
from giraffes come the ability to be obedient by choice
and that in turn gives rise to twined rope
from twined rope comes the idea of Paradise
and from the idea of Paradise comes ice-cream
from ice-cream comes the old dance called the Galliard
and from thence comes tight trousers
from tight trousers we get the plant called Aloe
and from Aloe springs typographical symbols of pauses
from typographical symbols of pauses we get the muscles of our thighs
and from them spring the population of amphibian animals

if there's coffee drink it
if you have a favorite song sing it

nothing of this is secret



Johannes S.H. Bjerg was born in 1957, and writes mainly haiku and related forms.