Passionfruit

I never cared for passionfruit
its dark resilient skin
the slippery eyes within
I never tired of lost causes
tales of losers and closed doors
ruins and forgotten wars
I never had enough of nothing
empty rooms and stasis
silence and abandoned places.

A passion then
for passion spent
for the losing side of an argument
for rays of light revealing dust
for rubbish tips, for junk, for rust
for wintry days with cups of tea
I even have
an arts degree.

Nine reasons to eat more fish

Followed by the hash key
down the supermarket aisles of my afternoon
I may be recorded for training purposes,
one never knows.
I listen carefully to my menu options
informed that they have changed recently,
they’re fewer now, and less exciting.
I kinda knew that.
I simply hold the line.
Why not? I’ve done it for most of my life
and finally I get to talk to a real person
who I don’t know.
As instructed, I could just hang up
but with great power comes great responsibility,
or so Spider Man says
and he would know.

Bruce Greenhalgh is a fitness instructor and writer of poetry. In August 2015 he was the Adelaide City Library’s Poet in Residence, and in 2016 he won Friendly Street’s Nova Prize. 

Readers’ original and unpublished poems of up to 40 lines can be emailed, with postal address, to [email protected]. Submissions should be in the body of the email, not as attachments. A poetry book will be awarded to each accepted contributor.