Two Poems by John Tustin

THE MERMAID’S TAIL

The mermaid’s tail patting the water
With a lovely little splish splash
Foaming up the water around her rock

Where she reclines in the sun,
Looking toward you with her big brown eyes
That brim with sin and promises.

You stand at the mast, ready to jump in,
Ready to swim toward her
And her breasts bare and pointing to you.

The mermaid’s tail patting the water
As if a hand tapping on the bed
Calling you to come and lie down

The way she is calling you to come
And rest eternally in the watery grave she has dug
And you? You will put the blame on the sea.

From the coast the birds gone fishing watch you
As you falter in your great swim,
Only your right hand visible as if waving goodbye
​
And you will put the blame on the sea.

RIDING THE GREASED PIG OF SUNSET

Riding the greased pig of sunset
all the way down the sky
to the precisely-timed space
of total darkness
between the dying and the newborn sun.
Each night dropping down another
of my memory-holes.

Wherever she would arrive
she always had packages in tow
and I’m remembering now
picking her up at the train station
in the rain.
Tonight will be walking to my car with her
in the rain,
helping her carry all her packages.
Getting to my front door with her,
being greeted by my sweet, mean cat.

Sliding down the firepole,
deeper and deeper down.
Endless floors descending.
Nauseated by movement,
blurring in such darkness.
Never landing on the 1st floor.

The image of a ship comes through,
still deep in the distance
with its enormous crucifix of a mast
and I’m thinking about getting the lights on,
piling all her stuff on the dining table.
She’s forever taking off her wet things
while I ask her if she wants to eat now or later.
The ship always comes closer
but it never arrives.
​
Riding the greased pig of sunset
like a comet hot to smash the earth.
Torching all that total darkness,
then flickering out
between the dying and the newborn sun.

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John Tustin’s poetry has appeared in many disparate literary journals since 2009. fritzware.com/johntustinpoetry contains links to his published poetry online.