9.

Dear Ruth, when it flowered it flowered

When it wilted it wilted when some

Explanation was needed neither of us could

Start in any place close to it.

The difference enters into the colour, you

Could not prevent our falling. We couldn’t

Be prevented. Everything can be opened now.

Autumn overshadows days; I never occupied myself.

Think of its meaning clarity. It did

Not mean clarity in any real sense.

Shelter meant a possibility but it does

Not stop long, and the shelter was

Not what I needed. The escape is

One another word for it. You know

The trees in Autumn you look at

Forlorn? That is one of my favourite

Words of the moment, this moment: forlorn.    

                                       

10.

Dear Monique, thank you for the bird

Hat you sent for my birthday. Only

You could have thought of so wonderful

And uncommon a gift. It’s such joy

To go now to church and cause

Such agitation. Paddy gave some body paint

To me and you would be frightened.

It goes so good with the colour

Of the hat! I smother it on

To excess and, aside from the smell

Of it, to which you become used,

It’s completely Wow! There must surely be

Narcotic in the mixture in some way.

Daniel dressed as a clown, and between

Us we upset everyone in the village.

At last my life is worth living.

I’m not surprised it’s taken this long.   

                                                    

11.

Dear Sir, I am writing to you

In my capacity as Founder and Events

Organiser of The Institute of Armed Gymnasts.

I beg you to read the enclosed

Prospectus. My girlfriend Dorothy suggested that you

Could be interested in financing our series

Of events that must occur this summer.

Dorothy says small businesses are pools of

Money but I am not sure - Dorothy

Has mixed her drinks recently and has

Come out with some strange funny things.

I think it improbable you would have

The money to spare but how about

"Help in kind"? Some of those things

You make would be good for having.

I’m not sure what they are for,

But anything can be a weapon. Thanks.    

                       

12.

Dear Honey, it pleases me to include

The feathers you asked for. May your

Plumes blossom. Here it is only sand

And wind but when you adore gentlemen

Of the sky there are some things

You have to accept, and we accept

Our lives quietly. As a reply to

Other enquiries, Yes, we accept samples of

Bone and fabric. Yes, it is alright

To classify clouds in accordance with size

And what they resemble. But not both:

This can cause confusion and turn. No,

We do not endorse the products you

Mention, nor those practices. And finally, Yes,

We believe that laughter is great medicine,

Which is why the parrot laughing was

Adopted as our corporate logo in 1999.  

                                     

13.

Dear Brian Poole and The Tremeloes, please

Disregard this letter. It’s been started wrong.

Dear Perfect Pools Ltd, I intend this:

I think I am perfect publicity material!

But how I wish I could swim!

I desire the water take me into

Her arms like a mother her baby,

Would wash me of my sins, make

A new version of me for good.

Sometimes, most times, I say what was

Not intended, and that is when clarity

Becomes confused with obscurity. To do that

Is to look deeply in a mirror

And see a bemused stranger. And sometimes,

Detachment would be "a good thing". Anyway,

When will you be able to come

Finish the pool? Before the sky collapses?   

         

14.

Dear Exhibitor, thank you for contributing to

Our latest show: "Looking At The World

In Black And White And In Colour".

Please let us have the following information

For the booklet to accompany the exhibition:

Date of birth, college background, religious opinion*,

Favourite color, person, poet, nation, variety of

Bean*. Items marked with an asterisk * are

Mandatory. Please also send an "artist’s statement"

Of not more than five hundred words.

(If you can send it on disk

In Word format please that would be

Super!) The end of things is in

Their satisfaction. We are all here volunteers,

And some of us have suicidal tendencies.

This art gallery is a registered charity.                             

Your support and donations are greatly appreciated.    

                 

15.

Dear Becky, I don’t think they are

Ever going to let me out of

Here. It has something to do with

What I make and how I make

It. They think I mean it all,

When in fact I don’t mean anything

At all. Most of the time I

Don’t even know what I’m doing, so

How can I mean it? They beat

Me up today and my eyes are

Full of blood. Later we are going

Out to supper, that new Thai place

I told you about. Correction begins Monday.

They seem determined to squeeze their ounce

Of meat off the bone. Did I

Ever tell you I love you? Maybe

I forgot myself. Becky, I lack you.    

                                                        

16.

Dear [please insert name here], the weather

Your height, our aggression; the political climate…..

(Some things we really need to know]

Let me start over. Thank you. Hello.

Dear Frank, are you finally over once

And for all your alcoholism (excuse me

While I take a sip of wine.

That’s better. Now you can get back

To begin your life all over again.

Yes, it was me sent you flowers.

It seemed pretty amusing at the time

But no: it wasn’t funny really, (sip)

Did I tell you how I’m thinking

About leaving the City perhaps the Country!

Terminal illness happens mainly in bus stations.

There’s too much of everything here and

Aggression, politics, climate, waste collection, no love  

                

Copyright © Martin Stannard, 2009

These poems are taken from Martin Stannard’s collection, FAITH, published by Shadowtrain books.