All Souls’ Night
by and published in Edition Seven of Pomegranate
The envelopes are all addressed,
neatly ordered, earliest to latest,
with my name, in your handwriting.
I pawed through them like a vinyl collector.
Neatly ordered – earliest to latest – I picked out a narrative as
I pawed through them like a vinyl collector,
weight on my chest like a bad spirit.
I picked out a narrative as
I recalled the tone undeniably yours,
weighed on my chest like a bad spirit.
I would do the voices if I could,
recalling the tone undeniably yours,
channelling you like an amateur shaman.
I would do the voices if I could,
but that would only make things worse.
Channelling you like an amateur shaman,
I touched the page as if it were braille,
but that only made things worse.
So I put it in the box with the others.
I touched the page as if it were braille,
as if the letter could seal itself closed.
I put it in the box with the others,
wishing it could send itself away, somehow,
but this letter can’t seal itself closed,
and these envelopes are all neatly addressed.
I wish it could send itself far away, somehow
Without my name, in your handwriting.
Dave Coates
Dave Coates is 22, and is a masters student at the University of Edinburgh, studying creative writing. He is on the editorial team at Read This Magazine, and had his first poem published in issue 11, though he thinks that’s kind of cheating. He writes a lot about birds, and enjoys watching sport on TV.