five poems

by Lachlan Brooks

This Sijo Is a Memoir  

I first wrote this as a novel,

then did some editing,

Then some more editing;

the only problem is, it has

No ending: but then,

autobiographies never do

Affirmation Is a False Friend

Many happy poems lie, but only

to you. For you alone

Do they reach into the deep,

pitless pockets of abundance

And extract the poisonous,

counterfeit coin of a tooth fairy.

Conversation Starter 1

What is there to write happy poems

about? Tell me. It is not

A rhetorical question. Show me

something to celebrate

And I will show you where

the deiform pinprick spoils its soul.

Topiary

Monstrous byproduct of sculpture,

and strange contortionist

Caught in the slow pose of

an emerging form, of entelechy

That reveals a great courtship with

nature and a messy divorce.

Hypocrisy Takes the Wind out of My Sails

The universe is balding; this reveals

that the inner lives

Of your enemies are, tragically,

just as rich as your own—

What great misfortune not to simplify

the awful mess of things.

Photo of Lachlan Brooks

BIO: Lachlan Brooks is a New York-based writer and actor. She holds an MA from Columbia University and a BFA from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. Her poetry has appeared in publications including Poet Lore, The Decadent Review, Chronogram magazine, The Year: A Crack the Spine Anthology: 2019, and Sheila-Na-Gig’s recent anthology Sharing This Delicate Bread.