Life can only be understood backwards, . . .
- Soren Kierkegaard
So I threw it into reverse
but still couldn't make out the Christmas carolers
the decked halls
the pristine lines . . . enjambed
my grandparents' wedding day
the tête-à-têtes
the in-absentias . . .
though I did hear the jazzers . . . faintly . . .
Then I got a new bicycle . . . a Rollfast . . .
red with red streamers . . .
Hey, where'd ya get the two-wheeler? . . .
From the bicycle shop in the lagoon
owned by a pod of sperm whalers
who were able to make a go of it
with the help of a small business grant . . .
It pays to know . . . you know? . . .
They ran through the specs of my bike
and filled me in on the whaling industry
circa 1800s . . .
the ghost ships that still roam the high seas
searching for missing children . . .
Like the Rachel or Terry Riley's In C? . . .
You got that right! . . .
Can you come out and play? . . .
No, I've got to finish shucking corn
and scoring gooseberries . . .
My life as a gooseberry . . . the sequel . . .
It's Canada not Canadian . . .
A bushel and a peck . . . and a rat-a-tat-tat . . .
Lying on a futon
in front of The Late Late . . . Late Show . . .
on a cool summer evening
Colin Clive as Victor Frankenstein
It's alive! . . .
the permutations . . . the combinations . . .
the out-of-the-box footage . . . knit one . . . purl two . . .
the cereal box mazes . . .
with shadows awaiting the heat of the sun . . .
a window to . . . Whereverland . . .
being clueless . . . the ecstasy thereof . . .
Falling asleep . . .
entering the room of a dream backwards
where she arrives . . . on a Harley . . .
I am all of 75 . . .
