“Heimat” by John RC Potter
Poetry Pause is the League of Canadian Poets’ daily poetry dispatch. Read “Heimat” by John RC Potter.
Heimat
By John RC Potter
I. Burial: Spring is the time of hope and renewal,
but you told us that April can be cruel.
That was the month that claimed her,
my sister Jo Ann Marie; a light turned off.
Heimat. Home. Homeland. Habitat.
Images flicker across the screen:
broken, shattered, and in a heap.
Heimat und รdland. Gott im Himmel!
The cards are wild and wicked, and
now, the eternal city seems unreal.
II. Game: Life is a game of chess, with
pawns scattered hither and yon.
In the darkened room, I see an
empty throne and a candelabra
on a dusty mantel beside a stuffed
nightingale: what Shakespeare could pen for such
a setting on the Moor. Good night. Sweet night!
III. Fire: Those who have departed, some barely
before their lives were started, they belong
to the angels and the nymphs. Narin, Narin!
Within a river, but not the Thames, a
sweet angel found her wings.
Leave the ancient rattle of bones to others.
Les voix des enfants. Mon Dieu, les enfants !
Outside the city, this city of the unreal
we board a barge bound for Carthage.
IV. Death: From the whirlpool to the deep sea, the die was cast;
faces were turned windward, and the wheel was held fast.
V. Thunder: Prison and palace are one and the same, but shells;
they hint at the ruins, wrecks, and earthly, private hells.
Copyright ยฉ John RC Potter
Previously published by Overgrowth Press (2025).
John RC Potter is an international educator from Canada who resides in Istanbul. The authorโs poem, โNie Wieder/Never Again,โ and his story, โRuthโs World,โ were Pushcart Prize nominees, and his poem, โTomato Heart,โ was nominated for the Best of the Net Award. The author has a gay-themed childrenโs picture book scheduled for publication. He is a member of the League of Canadian Poets and the Playwrights Guild of Canada.
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