Presence
JOHN SEMMLER
CHILD
A castle of soft rabbits and bears
Sit high in their towering baskets
They are safe within my walls
Sun shines brightly upon my kingdom
A quick flick grays the magic star
The birds are asleep
But the owls hoot happily
Furry arms climb up onto me
Its dark I whisper
Teddy just tightens his grip
ADOLESCENT
Dragon fire falls from the sky,
Quenched by a finger on a switch.
When we moved, the castle walls fell.
The occupants banished.
Thrown in the back of a truck
And left in the bottom of a box.
The backyard had no bounds,
The fences only kept joy in.
Intruded by the call for dinner,
By the parents who let it all go.
Now I am big.
I have travelled so far from
The castles we once ruled.
I sit alone in a foreign land,
With no owls to hear me hoot.
ADULT
Winged beasts resting;
No more chip or chirp.
Hungry hounds do not bark
But howl at the night light.
But dawn brings another commute;
A train sprawling across time.
The shackles of forgotten carriages
Clasping like bygone memories.
Twilight brings a warm, regal tide.
Quieting the mind with a hopeful hush.
Blankets brush buoyantly like bubbling, briny seas.
Stories of greatness set sail on ships powered by success.
Too bent on success.
Too hungry for fish to enjoy the cast of a rod
Or the routine of lounging in the afternoon sun.
ELDER
My legs flutter in the wind as they dangle over a coastal reef.
Like the rockpools, I am weathered and desertic
Until the weird wave of nostalgia bathes me.
The wash permits me to be a tourist in my youth, to when
I was more concerned with taking pictures than reveling in summer air.
I dreamt of the future, and carried burdens from the past.
Looking for something. Everywhere but within.
Standing on the precipice of the cold, dark,
I think to myself with the impudence of a chuckle
“Was this life enjoyed?”
John Semmler is a poet based in the northern suburbs of Sydney. He is the author of the highly self-acclaimed poem Ball of wax and little wicker, and hopes to intertwine his passion for literature within his career, potentially as a secondary English teacher. He enjoys spending his free time with friends, gaming, and/or rock climbing.
Contact him: john.semmler01@gmail.com
