An Enquiry into Sufi Metaphysics Enquiry Into Sufi Metaphysics
The Metaphysics of a Vegetarian Supper
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Transcript of The Metaphysics of a Vegetarian Supper
The Metaphysics of a
Vegetarian Supper
Andrew Taylor
2 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
The Metaphysics of a
Vegetarian Supper
By Andrew Taylor
Differentia Press
Santa Maria, CA
3 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
The Metaphysics of a Vegetarian Supper
By Andrew Taylor
Copyright © 2009
All Rights Reserved.
Published by Differentia Press
Book Design by Felino A. Soriano
Cover Image, courtesy of William Fallows
Except for the sole purpose for use in reviews, no portion of this book may be reproduced in any
form, without the written permission from the publisher.
Differentia Press
Santa Maria, CA 93458
Differentia Press Poetic Collections of the
│Experimental Spectrum│
differentiapress.com
4 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
Acknowledgements:
Some of these poems, or versions of the poems, have appeared or are forthcoming in the
following publications:
Thirteen Myna Birds, Counterexample Poetics, Full of Crow, Lit Up, Willows Wept Review,
Gists and Piths, The Houston Literary Review, Side of Grits, Pages, Neon Highway, Radiant
Turnstile, Gloom Cupboard, The Red Ceilings, Shoots and Vines, and Motel 58, and escarp.
Grateful thanks to the editors.
Thanks to Edge Hill University Poetry and Poetics Research Group, David McNamara, William
Fallows, Ursula Hurley, Alan Corkish, Sam Smith, Lara Konesky, Felino Soriano, James Scott,
Nik and William and Edna Taylor.
5 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
Table of Contents
She Strokes Bees______________________________________________________________10
Endanger Fencing_____________________________________________________________11
Strummer Telecaster___________________________________________________________12
Dial 9 for an Outside Line______________________________________________________13
Dripping in the House of Memory________________________________________________14
Empty Ring Finger____________________________________________________________15
We Paint While You Sleep______________________________________________________16
Spanish Notes________________________________________________________________17
Tea Box_____________________________________________________________________18
The Dry Ocean_______________________________________________________________19
the third button down is stitched with red thread_____________________________________20
M6 Stafford Services…________________________________________________________21
My own private motorway,…____________________________________________________22
Watford Gap grass…__________________________________________________________23
There is no need for a torch_____________________________________________________24
Lent________________________________________________________________________25
This Land is Reserved for Future Use_____________________________________________26
There are Kites_______________________________________________________________27
Medicine Bottle_______________________________________________________________28
In Heels she feels closer to God__________________________________________________29
Motionless Outtake____________________________________________________________30
Knitbone____________________________________________________________________31
To A Fox II__________________________________________________________________32
Been listening to the Palies have you?_____________________________________________33
Pitching Camp________________________________________________________________34
6 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
For Rachel Smith
7 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
8 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
The Metaphysics of a
Vegetarian Supper
9 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
10 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
She Strokes Bees
She strokes bees they must know
of course we do angel mark
faded in sunshine beyond the fringe
shaded face beneath cap follow
the flight of butterflies as they seek
buddleia growing on wasteland
“What colour are the flowers?”
“Black”
“No, what colour are the flowers?”
“Black”
A keen eye spotting planes dots to me
On the telephone mast starlings gather
are they being fried slowly
or is it convenient parking?
It gets better every time we meet
11 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
Endanger Fencing
A blinding division walk the Brecon Beacons
amongst pale horses at Easter
creatures caught in traps shot in the back
of the head a countryside of carnage
from the beginning hotels near Heathrow
twenty four hour rolling news
a chance to study war how I’d have liked you
to walk with me around cities at night
drinking whiskey and listening to shock
radio like a bad mistake I ponder
anonymous scream pilots descend
at half mile intervals in a seated night
I was unaware that you would wait for me
like the ghost ration of a slow light I isolate
12 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
Strummer Telecaster
Vini’s guitar fills the house
notes scatter like autumn leaves
Fidelity in Manchester
shopping with my Mother
a city on the edge of change
Ruth Another Setting
her room Linacre Lane
beginning of it all guitars
and other machines samples
of opera singers played in
remote Scottish cottages
when she left I assumed
the position under the coffee
table keeping reality at the door
space echo guitar
cat
companion saviours both
my country
will you ever recover?
my heart
13 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
Dial 9 for an Outside Line
Across rooftops spire cuts
into clear evening sky
common edged technology
amasses through wires
into the chest
battery powered 6-10 years
shadows fall away
fingerprints are left on desks
ice melts slowly in an engraved glass
flowers sway in the churchyard after dark
basement desk holds mementos
pacemaker amongst the relics
memoirs gather dust
space for unrestricted breath
low light design studio productiveness
dial 9 for an outside line
fading of traffic calm at the junction
new recordings to add to catalogue
roads are flooded passing an impossibility
a smell of autumn eroding at last
the pressure of summer
14 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
Dripping in the House of Memory
In the upstairs kitchen tap drips
the one that reminds me of Herbert Huncke
and the Chelsea Hotel
In Manchester a leak in the roof
provides water to be collected in a glass
and thought about
Hermit white room a House of memory
40 days 40 nights without human contact
Even you tramps and beggars
Thank you Manchester
Everyone needs some help at times
even you
What’s with the bunny in the window?
The nature of mind is clear light
There is contact I see the Hermitage
at this time of night the laptop screen lights
the way to the hermit
15 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
Empty Ring Finger
I notice the earrings first
the heat makes it look like I’ve a tan
She crosses near the prison
bass drum doubles its beat
city feels like L.A. in August
but this is Liverpool in June
Is love the size of a shoebox?
scratched inside forever etched
birds drift away with the tide
as night drops temperature
remains neon of Hardman Street
advertising refreshment
come on you can dance I’m waiting
with modern modes of communication
16 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
We Paint While You Sleep
Shortest night these long hours
a comfort to know while we sleep
the furies gather amongst the dunes
tide and wind sand against
walls of supermarkets
yellow neon bright to sea
patch of non-illumination
a field in North Wales
Dawn rising over rocks off the coast
those rocks belong to all of us
orange sky cracks appear horizon
drops into day screech of morning birds
all the big trees harbour secrets
and twine is washed up on the shore
17 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
Spanish Notes
I left DNA behind in Spain
skin was shed after dousing
with Factor 60
Balcony sat towels set to dry
a cat stared through railings
while indoors a makeshift
kettle boiled master craftsmen
at work realizing a
long dead architect’s dream
Numbers randomized a hidden code
dig the guidebooks out!
towers of scaffold encased
I am reminded of a job unfinished
18 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
Tea Box
Marty has grown a bushy beard
Jonny says beards are shit (except
ZZ Top) and that Kilbey looks like
one of his old managers
Tunes are ace
If she was alive would she read
the poems? How about remembering
music listened to in the cottage
the small details are beginning to fade
like a flag tied to a pole too long
no longer on the list the name is
removed
pony tailed girl wears heart
shaped earrings
19 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
The Dry Ocean
The room smells of paint
easiest days of her life have been spent
but here light shifts across a dusty desk
in the desert a hare freezes mid-air
goal posts tape wrapped cross-bar
a horse stops mid-gallop
earth tilts canal-side railings guard
leaves to concrete in three minutes
just radio, tea and dim lights
written in blue: melatonin and glasses
here lava-lamp like rain patterns
scroll across the desk
autumn leaves a dry ocean on fresh tarmac
20 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
the third button down is stitched with red thread
It is the finest of details
the kind that emerge after
careful consideration
open the brown paper parcel
follow the arc of the rose
as it heads towards the snow
making an angel of its own
a rocking chair comes to rest
out the window the shimmer of air
as darkness falls defusing light
from across the valley
21 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
M6 Stafford Services North twilight mirrored reflection a hint of neon cold walk through car-
park for supplies and hot coffee
22 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
My own private motorway, from childhood football after construction to arrival at Wigan
homeward bound, clear route past the roundabout town
23 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
Watford Gap grass verge through coffee steam, reassurance of traffic noise, knowing we are an
hour away - the beauty of the service station
24 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
There is no need for a torch
There is no need for a torch
the whiteness of the fields
allows the eye to settle
spot the amber lights of the horizon
through the swirling snow
Quite what I’m doing here is almost a mystery
walking through the fields to the church
on a Winter’s eve
Almost medieval this weather though
the glow of the pub enticing in its simplicity
offers a heightened sense of modernity
Returning past the former houses
of friends long gone
a hint of wood smoke allows
for the collection of memories that evaporate
through the iced tips of hedgerows
25 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
Lent
I hear the planet crying such Teen Angst
withdraw from use
allow for repair a reconstruction of the senses
amidst the sunshine there will be showers
a blue box of magic tricks
modulator synthesis
forty days forty nights forty lines
this time of year available light
precursor to walking city rivers skimming pebbles
wish for a clearer way
like a leaf circling around the deer shelter
and the poppy towering above the tall grass
26 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
This Land is Reserved for Future Use
Alone with the last of the light
blue through aged stained glass windows
Company glass of amber the tulips are opened fully
language of the ordinary recorded in a Wisconsin Cabin
listened to and read in a small Victorian garden
a visiting family of French people
Like the Manchester Hermit solitude
reflection can be achieved on a Virgin Pendolino
though the South carries its own dangers
out of sight and out of mind the golden child
offers more than can be expected
Come winter and the basket is prepared with fuel
draughts a reminder small globe shows the scale
We are miniscule and scattered around
one part of a tiny island
the tree has its desired branch as one leaf falls
elsewhere a bud is forming as replacement
what about those no longer here do they see the curtains slowly closing?
on the wall there is a photograph of my bride
signing the register
27 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
There are Kites
on beaches catching the breeze
keyboard girl’s chain and artificial sun
in the music hall
I open the dictionary given to me
on my 7th
birthday it contains letters
from her written in 1986
handwriting distinct it changed
before she died almost unrecognisable
on the postcard she sent from Llandudno
she disguised it and fooled me
I thought it would all work out in the end
on wet sand somebody has made squares
out of pebbles
perhaps in remembrance
28 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
Medicine Bottle
Not wanting to die without telling
or seeing the Star Room
red neon over Union Square
from a 32nd
floor balcony
forget little beds I want
to lounge luxuriously in cool cotton
Don’t drink the medicine
The ether will drag you into
an Alaskan pipeline of addiction
red and white blood and snow
evening comforter drifter
One minute you are a statue
the next a pigeon
Always read the label
29 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
In Heels she feels closer to God
She stands hand on hip
surveying
all below angled towards
the northern star
Stellar reaction
amidst the cables
artificiality
leg angled strap slung
top riding high ‘California’
pink flowers emit
the smell of death
like lilies
surrounded by candles
Amongst the detritus
of the Lower East Side
a vigil where green haired girls
compare tattoos
and share their drugs
until the candles meet their end
Hit so hard
she sees stars
and wishes him alive
30 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
Motionless Outtake
for Alex
Pylons anchored through the Vale
coated during nightfall
drips tainted back to earth
from the peaks clouds cushion
pylons cut
a rising grey catch tint of sun
up here a stillness
reflected in arc of vapour trail
31 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
Knitbone
the process needs assessment
the liquid is dark green
smells of eucalyptus
a need to be healed
take all the precautions necessary
bathe in lavender foam
reading and trying to unwind
and avoid dreaming of a past
involving ocean views
at Half Moon Bay
city vistas from the 86th
floor
coffee from Peet's
doughnuts from Krispy Kreme
a time when the future was bright
heat surrounds as pages turn
offering a glimpse into
the other side of the American Dream
I think about writing
through the difficulty
epically moving this soundtrack
32 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
To A Fox II
Autumn falls lanes
drop darkness
hedgerows trimmed
fields ploughed
in preparation
Roadside awareness
flash of white
twilight nocturne image
of a moment
nice moment actually, dusk was falling,
lovely watery sunset which was very enigmatic
amongst the overgrown runway strip......
also managed to locate abandoned buildings
that formed the old hospital site on the airfield
in amongst some woods......very, very scary though.
En-route accompanied
chatter of engine whistle
of rack scratched inside
journey reinterpretation
Sleek tell-tale signs
Unhexed through lanes
a darkened memory
trimmed hedgerows
ploughed fields an escape route
(With thanks to Antony Harding)
33 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
Been listening to the Palies have you?
Of course there is absolutely
nothing wrong with listening
to The Pale Fountains in fact
it should be encouraged
particularly on hot summer days
when the fields sway heavily
and the daylight goes on and on
reflecting shadows long across
motorway verges encouraging
shelter
25 years listen on
watch midwinter Manhattan a
temporary writing
room wonder about the futility of
holding onto things that should
be cast off and thought about differently
the pound is worthless against the dollar
they are stripping the Chelsea Hotel
of its history in an effort to make more money
room 211 is partly demolished
How clever
34 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r
Pitching Camp
Veering on early morning runs
to walk in old cemeteries
people have lived died and were loved
the city is historical artefact
seek a local tavern for chowder
attempt to fill a notebook page
in anticipation the scheme of things
inconsequential the smallness
of a speck of dust on a railway line
or a fly on a cactus
a pointer of universality
She feels as though her heart is
walking around in front of her
whereas I feel as though mine is melting
35 | T h e M e t a p h y s i c s o f a V e g e t a r i a n S u p p e r