Against Paradise was published by McClelland and Stewart ______ Available books at Chapters.ca Against Paradise All The God-sized Fruit ______ For more Poets

Shawna Lemay Pineapple The citizens have a weak belief in the pineapple state. Most fruit comes to earth by way of paradise but these are from the first circle of hell. Dante forgot Hieronymus Bosch omitted the workshops for reticents in purgatory where finials are made modelled on a misinformed phoenix then sent up to gather the yellow juice of the sun to anticipate the guillotine during a short surging existence as crown charismatic, hieroglyphic ruler of fruit. Apple In the raging quiet before expulsion there was exultation. Sacred laconic conversations with the apple mainly consisted of huzzah and huzzah. Then came the brief tyranny of the slithy chaperone or was it the blood-gilt and inscription? or was it the pie and crumble? the antidote? the cult? divination of the flaying? The time-line is irrelevant it all happened at once and many thanks to prevailing utopian dreams and general reluctance to operate on a need to know basis and beauty contests where the appearance of the baby grand is gesture. Made to speak oceans and grafted to mountains pursued in the name of over-articulation reached for in the holy abyss of prayer used as decor in tympanum and tapestry employed as paperweight and now at last with nary a disclaimer this impatient disclosure: the apple is tres fatigued and begs to be temporarily left alone. The apple cries but only on the inside only a very very little. A few black pips, tears are the reliquary’s treasure. Blue Hydrangea Romantic yearning for the infinite takes a knuckle sandwich in the old kisser. Novalis, in a bar watches Chet Baker get his clock cleaned chiklets knocked out realizes the sap will have to learn to blow all over again. Blue stars, he tells him afterwards, think blue stars. Thank you for understanding heartless cerebral bastard.