by Anita Patel

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I dropped a poem today –
it slipped out of my hands
and shattered –
words and punctuation marks
scattered …
no point gathering up the
few pieces still smooth
and glowing – a phrase or 
metaphor intact –
I mourn
the shining shape of it
(almost complete)
sitting on the white page…
I should have stepped away 
but could not resist
giving it a little shake
although I knew the verse 
could fall and break
with that last fussy vibration…

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Anita Patel’s work has been published in several journals including: Cordite Poetry Review, Backstory Journal, Not Very Quiet Journal and Mascara Literary Review. Her poetry was selected for Australian Book Review’s States of Poetry ACT, 2018. Her collection of poetry, A Common Garment, was published by Recent Work Press in 2019.