Poem of the Month
His barely recognizable corpse

By Fernand Ouellette

Published on April 7, 2014

His barely recognizable corpse
had gone through
the passage rites
of propriety,
the grandiloquence
of motionlessness.
But this was not
the void,
though his face
had shut itself
behind a membrane
of foreignness.
Each one
in his solitude
expressed himself,
surveying him relentlessly.
What a strange planet
he had become!
We could not withstand
the fascination.
The main thing was to stand still,
faithful to his silence.
Total absence
was close by. 

(The poetry collection Hours was translated by Antonio d’Alfonso)

More Poetry

Zeitgeist

              So it’s a dreary December, the sun a low ember behind ashen snowfall, when you see him bicycle by.               You know this guy! His paintbrush, you’ve seen it fly as watery blues and greys create a feisty pigeon perched atop a tarnished angel’s head.

Feel Happier in Nine Seconds

I learned the secret of serenity
by waterboarding daffodils.
My Buddha is landfill.
My mantra choked

Magnetic Days

I’m on St-Zotique and St-Laurent in the cage on the east side of the street shooting baskets alone. Despite it ...