It is a risk
To open up words,
unfold them to paper.
Found vowels,
hidden sibilants
chosen plosives
change shape
on a page.
(From Piece Work)
The succulent winter melon
The succulent winter melon
lay halved
before us,
seeds brimming its middle.
How do the birds get to the seeds? you asked.
I suppose it must get broken, answered I.
(From Piece Work)
Excising the pain
Words coalesce
out of confusion and despair
escape onto paper.
Dark sharp characters
glitter
dangerous
slice deep
to cleaner meaning.
(From Excision)
* Ingrid Andersen was born in Johannesburg, read for a degree in English literature and film and theatre criticism at Wits and is presently completing her Masters. Her work has been published in poetry journals for 16 years. Excision, her first volume of poetry, was published in 2004 and her second, Piece Work, was published by Modjaji Books in September. She is the founding editor of Incwadi, an online SA journal that explores the interaction between poetry and image. An Anglican priest, she works in human rights, healing and reconciliation.
