Gardens of Dirty Laundry
Translated by Simon Brown from Laurence Gagné
you’re the little guy in the wall
me i wonder what really comes through
i’m just like
hey come on through
i wonder if there’s any end to it
i wonder if there’s any organs in there
you say it’s beating
it’s digesting
you’re almost sure
*
it’s snowing right in my eyes
morning dripping makeup down my cheeks
as chisel-bearing hands begin to shake
grope blindly
for signs of rupture
washing counting
the seconds
*
what a beautiful morning
why is it a beautiful
morning
sun shining bright as a police station
in the palm of your hand
*
it’s a celebration a festival a zoo really
animals throwing themselves
into the flame of a candle
i got lipstick on my teeth
from talking too fast
with you
i broke my leg
*
i’ve got memory problems
from staring at
eclipses bare-eyed
and slaughterhouse videos on loop
the story never ends
it doesn’t make
any sense
at all
*
there is what i know of your throat
you can’t admit it
my meat is strange
next to yours
a leftover from before
the really real alarm-clock hours
when my ideas about the world get eaten
by the first cats
of dawn
*
me i’m imprecise
eyes closed
asking for directions
eyes closed
bedroom floor obstacle course
maybe even loss
of legs
*
say
my dead-end voice
once upon a time you would’ve wept
to see me get up early to
go out into the storm
all unravelled like an old lady
i’m warning you
« Les jardins de linge sale » was originally published by Le lézard amoureux / Groupe Nota bene.
ABOUT THE CREATOR
Photo by Carol-Ann Belzil-Normand
Simon Brown is a self-taught poet and translator from rural New Brunswick now based in the Quebec City area. Simon’s poems have been presented in journals, collections, artist books, media artworks, and performances. Their latest chapbook, oh the iffy night, was published by above/ground press in 2021. @simonbeige on Twitter. @simon_beige on Instagram.
Photo by Rachel Lamoureux
Laurence Gagné is a poet from Carleton-sur-Mer, in the Gaspé. She studies creative writing and teaches literature. Laurence’s poems have been performed live and shared via journals such as Estuaire, Mœbius, and Exit. Her first collection, Les jardins de linge sale, was published by Le lézard amoureux in 2020. @laaurencegagne on Twitter. @laurence.gagne on Instagram.