Thursday, September 17, 2015
"Life Bout: or, the philosophy of a roller derby jammer"
"Life Bout: or, the philosophy of a roller derby jammer"
by Marley
The jammer never lingers long in loss’s
Stagnation./
It’s a whistle,/
Heels up wheels up/
Toe toe toe—Sprint/
Rolling Lightening/
Around the track,/
Looping, legs reach/
Crossing, lift each/
Shedding something,/
Physicality— Until/
A Block. A stop./
A bust. A down/
to the knees, A/
worn wrists breaking,/
The speed onto/
A chalky con-/
crete floor./
A low look at sister skates, still scuttle-/
shiffling ahead, but/
None of this felt—/
For fast without /
Single solid/
Thought sticking to/
Padded knees smack smack, pull/
Legs above wheels,/
Then, a lean breathe/
Lift wheels toe toe/
Sprint! Roll on and/
On again, always/
Looking forward/
and back, fast 'round/
the track.
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I really admire your ability to use alliteration and new lines to create sound. I could feel the harshness of skates on concrete; you have an excellent rhythm and beat. Your poem moves sharply and quickly, the way I imagine a roller derby jammer would maneuver across the concrete. I've never been able to really give my poems a beat and I think you have an incredibly creative and unique writing style.
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