was it simply luck that caused her to turn
down this alley? bad luck? good luck?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
the face she recognises opens a portal
to a past horizon, re-visiting enemies<\/p>\n\n\n\n
that were once friends. beginnings
of promise that ended in toxic rejection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
like fleeting images of a stereoscope
she again feels the disintegrating of self<\/p>\n\n\n\n
before the assault of negative vibes, whispered
that slowly grew, passing to others like<\/p>\n\n\n\n
wolves sniffing raw-blood-meat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
as quickly as the images come
they are stripped from the reel, she<\/p>\n\n\n\n
no longer believes their false truth
of her. she feels no anger over this<\/p>\n\n\n\n
marbled oil and paint rendering of memory
just a strange melancholic sense of pity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
she greets this post-person with poise,
enquires on her well-being, her writing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
then with a smile, an affirmation and, \u2018I must
move on,\u2019 she closes the portal behind her<\/p>\n\n\n\n
embraces the perfume of happenstance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
was it simply luck that caused her to turndown this alley? bad luck? good luck? the face she recognises opens a portalto a past horizon, …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":4502,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_wpcom_ai_launchpad_first_post":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"{title}\n\n{excerpt}\n\n{url}","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[19],"tags":[627,630,629,628,562,21,10],"class_list":["post-4500","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-poetry","tag-bad-luck","tag-enemies","tag-false-friend","tag-good-luck","tag-past","tag-poetry","tag-writing"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pff1uY-1aA","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4347,"url":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/?p=4347","url_meta":{"origin":4500,"position":0},"title":"Four Writing Competitions to Watch","author":"Mountain Ash Chapter","date":"April 5, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Here at Mountain Ash Chapter we're seeing a lot of exceptional writing this year! 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They counted their questions and sharpened their pens,They rechecked the date and reminded their friends, They scoped out the library \u2013 everything\u2019s fine,They warded off covid and broke out the wine.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Mountain Life"","block_context":{"text":"Mountain Life","link":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/?cat=4"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/fallon-michael-qmlGWIaIgpo-unsplash.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/fallon-michael-qmlGWIaIgpo-unsplash.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/fallon-michael-qmlGWIaIgpo-unsplash.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/fallon-michael-qmlGWIaIgpo-unsplash.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/fallon-michael-qmlGWIaIgpo-unsplash.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4257,"url":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/?p=4257","url_meta":{"origin":4500,"position":3},"title":"This is Not a Poem","author":"Elissa McKay","date":"March 8, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"\u201cThis is not poetry!\u201dmy son shoutsthe darkness of his eyesswimming in outrage Because I can\u2019t just arrangewords on the pageto make pretty shapesthe words have to mean somethingor rhyme (rhyme can stand infor meaning) poetry has tobe profound More meaningful thanthe long clean lines of armand leg, his straight nose,his\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Memory Book"","block_context":{"text":"Memory Book","link":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/?cat=120"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/rachael-crowe-jK8JZGgBtHM-unsplash.jpg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/rachael-crowe-jK8JZGgBtHM-unsplash.jpg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/rachael-crowe-jK8JZGgBtHM-unsplash.jpg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/rachael-crowe-jK8JZGgBtHM-unsplash.jpg?fit=800%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4315,"url":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/?p=4315","url_meta":{"origin":4500,"position":4},"title":"Evening Song","author":"Judie Mitchell","date":"March 22, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"for Sylvia Plath (Morning Song) Once upon a foreign timewe were bornour hearts ticked loudOur mothers fussed and frettedfearful our baby breaths would falterheard every hungry wailsmiled as we sang our burbling songs\u00a0proud as vowels morphed into words We were postwar preciousharbingers of harmonyfattened on free school milkand heard by\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Poetry"","block_context":{"text":"Poetry","link":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/?cat=19"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/rod-long-y0OAmd_COUM-unsplash-e1711068925336.jpg?fit=800%2C534&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/rod-long-y0OAmd_COUM-unsplash-e1711068925336.jpg?fit=800%2C534&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/rod-long-y0OAmd_COUM-unsplash-e1711068925336.jpg?fit=800%2C534&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/rod-long-y0OAmd_COUM-unsplash-e1711068925336.jpg?fit=800%2C534&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3949,"url":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/?p=3949","url_meta":{"origin":4500,"position":5},"title":"Chance Meeting with a Lyrebird","author":"Elissa McKay","date":"November 3, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Shock! Horror! I can\u2019tbelieve I would see you hereat my super-secret moundbeside this walking track full of tourists And at the exact momentI had planned to beginmy rehearsal: I am a veryprivate, private bird with so much TAAAAAAALLL-EEEEENNNNNNNNNTTTLook-at-my-amazingTAAAAAAIIIIILLLLL All I wanted was somePR-RI-VA-CYGet-back-here-I-feel-soVVVIIIIOOOOLLLLAAAATTEEEDD shimmy-shake-warbleNever gaze on me againI need solitudesame\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Mountain Life"","block_context":{"text":"Mountain Life","link":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/?cat=4"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/geoffrey-moore-hpETFmwmlUo-unsplash.jpg?fit=960%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/geoffrey-moore-hpETFmwmlUo-unsplash.jpg?fit=960%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/geoffrey-moore-hpETFmwmlUo-unsplash.jpg?fit=960%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/geoffrey-moore-hpETFmwmlUo-unsplash.jpg?fit=960%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/molly-blackbird-a-xEUwYSPLw-unsplash.jpg?fit=4608%2C3072&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4500","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/23"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4500"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4500\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4503,"href":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4500\/revisions\/4503"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4502"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4500"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4500"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4500"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}