Maungawhau
Fed up with sitting dormant
I shove my legs
into compression tights
double knot laces
and leave the house
for the first time
in weeks.
At the base of Mount Eden
I muster the strength
to move through its shadow.
Pounding against the hard ground
circling the verge of the volcano
the higher I climb
the steeper the surface.
I envision eruption
force feet to continue
to the top
without stopping.
Muscles turn to magma
skin is scoria red.
Blood pulses veins
close to bursting.
With great effort
I reach the summit
molten body explodes
across Auckland’s skyline,
into the South Pacific.
Camille McCawley’s pamphlet ‘An Odd Gift’ was released by Bearded Badger Publishing. She has worked with Apples & Snakes and has been published by Bent Key Publishing, Us Versus Virus, For Women Who Roar, and No Jobs in the Arts.