If I poked this air
with my finger
molecules
almost visible to the eye
might spread like a pillow
under a royal head
Stars might slip
out of fixed positions
and fall
into my brain’s cup,
gathering there like secrets
And I might keep
for a few
endless distances away
who leaned at windows
and wondered,
word of fortune, news of love
Questions and Answers
What inspired “If I Poked this Air”?
I wrote “If I Poked This Air” when I was in grade eight—so this is the work of a young teenager. If I remember, I jotted it down a few minutes before I fell asleep one night. I’d say it’s inspired by that half awake, half asleep state.
What poetic techniques did you use in “If I Poked this Air”?
I think here I was trying to write in a very simple, quietly lyrical style.
This poem “If I Poked this Air” originally appeared in Timothy Findley & the War Novel. Spec. issue of Canadian Literature 91 (Winter 1981): 57.
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