Stan Rogal : TRAVESTIES, by Karl Jirgens

TRAVESTIES, Karl Jirgens
Exile Editions, 2025

 

 

 

 

After many years of publishing and promoting poetry and poets (note the effective use of alliteration here) through his Rampike magazine and his role as professor at several universities, it’s nice to see that Exile Editions has seen fit to publish Karl Jirgens’ first poetry collection, Travesties. The book is divided into five sections: Travesties (covert irony), Homages (gentle humility), Lingo (language play), Raptures (oceanic pieces), and Dreamscapes (embracing surrealism). The descriptors make it clear that Karl is exploring a lot of territory in terms of subject matter, as well as form, including two very amusing rhyming sing-song poems in Raptures that deal with ecological concerns.

While one section is titled Homages, it is typical of Karl’s humble and generous nature to mention and celebrate numerous characters — either named in the title, or dedicated to, or arising within a poem — throughout the book. In other words, while the poems are obviously personal, they are more about the ‘other’ than the ‘self,’ and it is several of these “tip-of-the-hat” poems that mostly grabbed my attention. The opening poem, Moment, has a Dr. Seuss quality to it, dedicated to Louis Dudek, mentioning Beckett’s Not I, a small boulder is confused for a cat and vice versa, until, in the end, the two images merge: “But, just a rock sitting / at the sidewalk’s side, / its grey fur glistening in the rain”. There is a droll, gentle (even surreal) sense of humour at work here, as in other poems within the collection, also typical of Karl.  

The poem He Said is dedicated to Eugene McNamara, and Karl opens by noting (flatteringly, I believe) that the man “never spoke of praise for his own writing” while later lauding the fact that Eugene never said to anyone “your poems are awful… / …go home, find work in a bank.” Karl includes words of wisdom to young writers, using Phil Hall as back-up: “[Eugene] explained how single words can serve as stones / in a stone wall, and how a stone can be a grace note.” Trust Karl to offer teaching moments to poet wannabes, even as he manipulates words and language to fashion his own various walls of sound and vision.

Other writer/artist names appear in further poems. It’s a long list of folks Karl had associations with, either personally, or through their work, and which obviously affected and/or influenced him and his work: Nicole Brossard, Alistair Macleod, Robert Kroetsch, Ray Souster, Margaret Atwood, bill bissett, Jack Kerouac, Judith Fitzgerald, Erin Moure, rob mclennan, Kathy Acker, Al Purdy, Nonal Morriseau, Jean-Paul Riopelle, Alanna Bondar, George Elliott Clarke… the list goes on (and on).

An image that especially tickled me is from a poem lifted and reconstructed from one of Karl’s short stories in his book, The Razor’s Edge, where superstar Bulgarian-French philosopher, literary critic, semiotician, psychoanalyst, feminist, and novelist Julia Kristeva “waltzed out of the elevator inside an upscale Toronto hotel gripping a large chalice of Shiraz. The hotel lobby was lined with enormous mirrors which reflected her pirouette. She gazed at me and said, ‘I know in Canada, one mustn’t drink wine on the elevator but I… I am Julia Kristeva!’” Bravo, Julia! After this shameless flourish, we’re presented with a brief history of lit theory that includes the Tel Quel group: Sollen, Levi-Strauss, Lacan, Derrida, Cixous, followed by how she embraced Samurai culture. It was a bold reminder that there once was a time when intellectuals (and artists/writers) were invited to be interviewed on radio and TV, treated as celebrities — rock stars, in fact — and that their words and ideas were respected and deemed worthy of consideration. My, my, how times have changed! Or am I, in actuality, lost in some alcohol-induced haze where I merely imagined that such events ever occurred in my lifetime? It’s possible, yes, even likely.

Anyway, speaking of intellectual thinking (and a brave ((these days)) step into the murky waters of postmodernism), check out Karl’s take on the Jack and Jill children’s verse as Jill voices her displeasure at being stereotyped and forced to endlessly tumble down the hill after Jack. “You’ve fallen endlessly,” she bemoans. “Broken your crown repeatedly. Don’t you realize that concussions cause dementia, pathological verbosity? I worry about you, Jack. But what about me?” Well, I’ll allow you, dear reader, to discover what transpires.    

Perhaps my favourite piece in the book is a prose poem titled Father’s Day: Homage to Robert Kroetsch. wherein the narrator (Karl?) is visiting his 90-year old father — who is suffering from Parkinson’s, losing his physical and mental faculties — in hospital. The piece is written in a manner that manages to convey the awkward sadness and helplessness of the situation, though without becoming maudlin and cloyingly sentimental. We are given the facts as the narrator responds in the only way possible, given that the events are not only repetitive, but incurable: “He thinks he’s 99. He’s not. He thinks he’s going to work today. He’s not. He thinks he’s late for work. He’s not… He thinks his wife works every day. She doesn’t. He thinks people are stealing stuff from his bathroom. They’re not.” There’s nothing to be done and we return to Julia Kristeva again, and her notion of Samurai culture, “that for a true martial-artist, / life is a race against death and paradoxically, towards death.”

As with all of Karl’s creative writings, there’s a lot to mull over in this collection, a lot to consider and think about. Fortunately, he also provides a fair amount of humour to keep the journey pleasant and eventful. As my pal Paul Lisson says, “Crushing and righteous thinking and writing. Strong. Not sad. Not sentimental. Adult, with a cigar.”

Congratulations Karl. 

 

 

 

 

Stan Rogal lives and writes in Toronto along with his artist partner Jacquie Jacobs. His work has appeared almost magically in numerous magazines and anthologies. The author of several books, plus a handful of chapbooks, a 13th poetry collection was published in March 2025 with ecw press. Co-founder of Bald Ego Theatre and former coordinator of the popular Idler Pub Reading Series.

Poet Questionnaire #7 : Karl Jirgens answering Stan Rogal

 

 

 

 

 

To be honest, I don't know that many writers these days, on a personal level. Times have changed, at least, for me. Let’s face it, COVID didn’t help, and it seems like many people are remaining more cocooned in their dwellings; in their computers, rather than involved in the community, live and in person. During the 1990’s there was a vibrant group I hung out with, partied with, put on events with, but this group has (sadly) long since dispersed. I thought it might be worthwhile to re-create some of that old-time camaraderie and "the interview" format seemed a nice, relaxed entry. I also wanted to interview poets who contributed to the literary community in broader ways, not only as writers, but as publishers, editors, event organizers, and such. I met Karl several years ago, though, at a distance, through his readings and publishing efforts. It’s only in more recent years that we’ve gotten to know each other on a more personal level. That, despite the fact I’m in Toronto and he’s in Windsor, kilometers, if not worlds apart.

I was aware that Karl had stopped publishing Rampike magazine, and that he’d retired from U of Windsor, and didn’t seem to be doing much in the way of organizing literary events anymore. Suddenly, he had a collection of short stories appear, The Razor’s Edge, told me of readings he’d set up — including a salon series in his home — and, most importantly (since my intention is to interview poets), he was about to publish his first poetry collection. The timing seemed perfect. Ladies and gentlemen, I present Karl Jirgens, resurrected and rejuvenated.  

1. Will the real Karl Jirgens please stand up! Meaning, give our readers an overview as to who you are, what you do, and why you do it.

Ok, thanks for asking. I’m the former English Dept. Head and Chair of the Creative Writing Program (U Windsor), author of six books (Coach House, Mercury, ECW, The Porcupine’s Quill & Exile). My newest book, Travesties (my first book of poetry) is due this autumn from Exile Editions (Toronto). I edited two books (on Jack Bush, and Christopher Dewdney), plus, an issue of Open Letter magazine with Beatriz Hausner on collaborative creations. My scholarly and creative texts are published globally (most recently, in Japan). My poetry was selected for the anthology Best Poetry of Canada, 2023. I founded, edited & published Rampike magazine, my short-fiction collection, The Razor’s Edge (The Porcupine’s Quill Press), won minor prizes and was published in 2022. And, I’m a Grandmaster of Korean Martial Art (TKD; (8th Degree). Who knows why I did those things? I guess I enjoy those things.

2. You edited and published Rampike magazine for many years. Can you give us some history, and why did you stop publication?

Yeah, I founded Rampike and ran it for 36 years. Rampike featured celebrated international artists, writers, and theorists (e.g.; Paul Auster, William Burroughs, Julia Kristeva, Nourbese Philip, Robert Mapplethorpe, Jacques Derrida, Daphne Odjig, Dennis Oppenheim, Chris Burden, Norval Morrisseau, Leonard Cohen, Judith Fitzgerald, Stan Rogal, rob mclennan, among many others). Rampike’s print archive is located at the Thomas Fisher Rare Books Library (Toronto). And  Rampike’s digital archive is at the University of Windsor (Leddy Library - Free and searchable:

https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/rampike/about.html). The magazine was my gift to the world. It offers a slice of arts history from 1979 to 2016; a very interesting period! I stopped publishing it because it was a drag which included grant applications, distribution, rounding up talent, and income tax, etc. Sometimes I wanted to change the publication’s name to Rumpache.

3. As a former university professor, you also organized many literary events. Any that stand out for you? What does this mean to you in terms of creating a community? What impact do these involvements have on you and your writing?

Wherever I’ve gone, I’ve tried to build a creative community (and yes, also literary). I tried to build arts throughout Ontario (visual art, theatre, music, writing, etc.). I started many publications, Rampike, Algoma Ink, Windsor Salt, and guest edited mags such as Open Letter and Hamilton Arts Literary. I organized dozens of literary events including those for my students. I worked for 10 years organizing BookFest Windsor. Lenore Langs was the Director during that period. I’m unsure of the overall impact of those events. I keep learning and writing. I think Chaucer said it best: “The life so short, the craft so long to learn" (Parlement of Foules).

4. You held literary events in Sault Ste. Marie where the locals would show up just because they knew it would be a wild and crazy experience. I was part of one of those events. A sold-out crowd. There was a bar set up, the audience sat at tables, and you had students perform Heiner Müller’s Hamletmachine throughout the space. Can you elaborate on the audience response to all this madness?

Sure, those events were free by the way. And audiences loved those shows. You did a great presentation at that event! I remember! The students who performed Hamletmachine rehearsed for many weeks. I asked them to present the play amongst the audience. It was a fabulous performance that included in-house large-screen video,  acoustics, and blood pouring out of refrigerator on stage, 3 television sets, and a person on a swing moving back and forth over the heads of the audience! My events included music, theatre, and writing and were held in a “black box” theatre (very flexible). I’ve found that venues elsewhere are more confining. I did shows with you, Beatriz Hausner, & Gary Barwin in Toronto, and Windsor. You and I are due for another show with Peter Hrastovec (Windsor’s Poet Laureate) for an upcoming show/book-launch at Biblioasis Bookstore (Windsor, April 24th, 7 pm; free). I’ll tell you a little story about one of my shows. There was a hippy dude who wanted to read at one of my events. I asked if he was a writer. He said no, but he liked to recite musical lyrics. So, I thought of Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Leonard Cohen, and I said ok. On the night of the event he recited TV show lyrics, and intoned “Batman, Batman, Batman, Batman, na-na-na-na-nah, Batman!” The audience loved it!

5. Although you’ve stopped publishing Rampike and have retired from university, are you still involved with the Windsor live literary scene in any way?

Of course, and all over Ontario too! And I hope, soon across Canada. I’ve got publications all over the place. I’ve got writing forthcoming in Jacket 2, and Guernica editions. I just participated in a Writers Union of Canada reading (online), and I’ve organized readings at my house with roughly 2 dozen guests featuring writers such as Stuart Ross, Andre Narbonne, Jade Wallace, & artists like Collette Broeders and Iain Baxter&, plus musicians including professional musicians such as Nicholas Jirgens. I want to integrate arts presentations (music, visual art, writing, etc). I’m planning a series of shows at Villa 92 (in Windsor) with artist, Chris McNamara. So, I’m as busy as ever. This autumn, I plan on a series of book launches, so if someone wants to invite me, then please email me (jirgens@uwindsor.ca).

6. Have you noticed a change in the live literary scene, pre- and post-COVID?

Yep. COVID pretty much killed live literary scenes, but now they’re making a come-back. So, I think we’ll see more hybrid events; live and digital (Zoom). COVID was rough but it inspired Zoom readings, so that’s an unexpected benefit. Writers and artists  are a resilient bunch.  

7. I know that your fiction has been published in book form, but you’re also a poet, though you’ve never had a collection published, which I find sadly surprising. This is about to change. Can you tell us something about your book coming out this year with Exile? Feel free to advertise.

Thanks. My book is a collection of poems that I wrote over 20 years. It’s kind of a “collected.” Exile will release it this autumn. I’ll read from it and will have books for sale this spring, at the Biblioasis event in April (poetry month). The book is divided into 5 sections: Travesties (covert irony), Homages (gentle humility), Lingo (language play), Raptures (eco-rap & oceanic pieces), plus Dreamscapes (embracing Surrealism). It’s a lot of fun with some serious stuff too. Here’s the CIP (Cataloguing in Publication) from Exile: “Travesties is a brilliantly crafted collection of poems about the world we live in and fundamental questions about ourselves, life, and death. Karl Jirgens, through his range of innovative and experimental literary expressions and passionate demonstrations of delight for shifts in perception/altered states/eco-poetics, powerfully reminds readers of the bond between every individual, all living things, and the world that continuously shapes us.” I am very grateful to Beatriz Hausner (editor) and Michael Callaghan (publisher), who both worked very hard on this book.

8. What keeps you writing poetry given there are fewer poetry publishers and even fewer poetry books being sold? Or am I wrong in this evaluation?

To be frank, my next book is a novel (covering family history). The working title is Cold War Blues. Then, I want to work on a book about how people are obsessed with money$. Maybe I’ll call it “Ka-Ching!” I’ll keep writing poetry, but yes, there are fewer publishers, and fewer books of poetry sold. So, I will pursue fiction for a while, but I’ll make it beautiful and poetic.

9. Poets deal in words. What is your favourite word? What about another word that maybe strikes your funny bone or makes you feel uneasy/awkward for no particular reason when you say/use it? Why?

I want to be remembered as someone who restored the word “groovy.” It’s a great word that’s almost forgotten. The word “tariff” makes me feel uneasy. Why? Because there’s absolutely no point to a trade war. It benefits no one. Many words are a drag and make me uncomfortable (e.g.: “51st state,” “occupy,” “war,” “invasion,” “nukes,” etc.)

10. What other sources influence your poetry, i.e., music, movies, sports…?

I’ve read a lot of books. I write poems to honour other writers, while pointing to twists of mind. And, I write about eco-culture. I guess my big themes are sex and death. But I won’t reveal my “sources.” Journalists know why one shouldn’t disclose information that identifies a “source.” I think Leonard Cohen once said that revealing a source of inspiration is like revealing your gambit. So, I won’t directly answer that question.

11. Do you feel that poetry has the power to end war, hunger, discrimination, and environmental destruction in the world?

Probably not. Yvgeny Yevtushenko used to be able to pack sports stadiums in Russia (don’t get me wrong, I strongly disagree with Russian politics). But until we can pack forty thousand people into a sport stadium to listen to poetry, I don’t think poetry has the power to change the world.

12. Do you have any advice for anyone who’d like to be(come) a poet?

Use your wits to find gainful employment. You can write poems on the side. Look at the history of some of the world’s top poets, Wallace Stevens worked as an insurance lawyer, T.S. Eliot worked as a bank clerk, a schoolteacher, and a literary critic, and later on he was an editor, and then a publisher. William Carlos Williams served as a doctor, and Charles Bukowski worked as a postal clerk. Tomas Transtromer was a psychologist. Heck, even Lewis Caroll had a job teaching math at Oxford. So, forget about earning a living through poetry. The world isn’t ready. Wordsworth said; “The world is too much with us.” So, don’t squander your time.

13. Please add any additional comments of your own choosing. Manifestos included.

Good question, thanks! I will only add the golden rule; “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Which ought to be the rule for everybody and is embedded in most global belief systems. Here’s my “manifesto”; “Art is art, everything else isn’t.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Karl Jirgens, former English Dept. Head and Chair of the Creative Writing Program (U Windsor), is author of six books (Coach House, Mercury, ECW, The Porcupine’s Quill & Exile Editions). Jirgens edited two books (on painter, Jack Bush, and poet, Christopher Dewdney), plus, an issue of Open Letter magazine with Beatriz Hausner. His scholarly and creative texts are published globally (most recently in Japan). His poetry was selected for the anthology Best Poetry of Canada, 2023. Jirgens founded, edited, published Rampike magazine, featuring celebrated international artists, writers, and theorists. Rampike’s print archive is at the Thomas Fisher Rare books library U of Toronto, & digitally archived (free: https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/rampike/about.html). His prize winning short-fiction collection, The Razor’s Edge (The Porcupine’s Quill Press), was published in 2022 (See: https://www.jirgens.org/ ). Jirgens is a Grandmaster of Tae Kwon Do (8th Degree Black Belt).

Stan Rogal lives and writes in Toronto along with his artist partner Jacquie Jacobs and their pet jackabee. His work has appeared almost magically in numerous magazines and anthologies. The author of several books, plus a handful of chapbooks, a 13th poetry collection was published in March 2025 with ecw press. Co-founder of Bald Ego Theatre and former coordinator of the popular Idler Pub Reading Series.

 

 

Karl Jirgens : Incrementally Sounding, by Penn Kemp

Incrementally Sounding, Penn Kemp
Hem Press, 2023

 

 

 

 

Penn Kemp’s newest book is appropriately titled Incrementally. One can read it as a series of concrete poems, or as notations for sound pieces which multiply meaning, and boost/boast of their underlying acoustic dimension. Penn Kemp is a celebrated trailblazer since her first publication (Coach House, 1972). She was London's inaugural Poet Laureate and Western’s Writer-in- Residence. Her many marvellous projects include Luminous Entrance: A Sound Opera for Climate Change Action (DVD). She is engaged in eco-culture and as well as other worthy causes. With Richard-Yves Sitoski, Penn Kemp published Poems in Response to Peril, an anthology in support of Ukraine. She was chosen as the League of Canadian Poet’s Spoken Word Artist (2015). She is a regular participant of the “Poet in the School” program. Penn Kemp is a keen participant in Canada’s cultural life, with thirty books of poetry, prose and drama; seven plays and ten CDs produced, as well as a broad range of videopoems. She has many web-pages featuring her numerous creations. See: http://pennkemp.weebly.com/

Also visit: https://epe.lac-bac.gc.ca/100/201/300/stanza/2006/06-10/linktext/direct/kemp.htm

A version of “Night Orchestra,” which is a poem included in Incrementally, is available on-line with music and sound designed by composer Bill Gilliam. “Night Orchestra” is also a videopoem and can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98OEWklDcYY.  Here is a brief textual excerpt from “Night Orchestra” revealing Penn Kemp’s playful treatment of language:

                     Knight Orchid’s Ra
          Knight Tor Quest Ra
          Nigh Tore             Que ce que ça?       Raw
                   Night Or Kid Straw
                     Last straw lost

          dip dip dip dip deep dip deep dip deepen deepend

Acoustic versions of many of the poems in Incrementally can also be found (free of charge) at: https://angrystarlings.bandcamp.com/album/incrementally.

This collection of poems is both visual and accoustic. The afterword to Incrementally is by one of our pre-eminent poets and theorists, Steve McCaffery. McCaffery sums up this collection by speaking about mathematics and canons of proportion. He discusses Incrementally with reference to pattern recognition and digital accumulations of words, which oppose linear grammar by attending to syntagmatics. He speaks of the relationships between linguistic units used in a sequence as they shape poetic structures. McCaffery identifies what he sees as Pythagorean progressions in Penn Kemp’s creations in this collection. If one recalls the Pythagorean geometric theorem, then one notes that the square of the length of the hypotenuse of a right triangle equals the sum of the squares of the lengths of the other two sides. By way of illustration, I offer this brief excerpt from Kemp’s poem, “Re Solution”;  

we
weir
Virgo
weird gong
we're going too
we're going to be
we're going to begin
we're going to begin right
we're going to begin writing
we're going to begin writing and
we're going to begin writing and purr
we're going to begin writing and purr form
we're going to begin writing and performing

What can be considered a Pythagorean progression is evident in this poetry. The expansions of meaning evident are connected to the notions of “we’re” and “performing.” Among other things, Penn Kemp is a performer, who is deeply invested in language play. Kemp’s introduction to this collection helps explain her purpose. She speaks of Incrementally as a collection of sound and pattern poems that feature visual interplays along with puns or homophonic meanings. Visually, these poems are concrete structures, but acoustically, they are what Kemp calls "soundings". These texts provide notations for performances. If one listens to audio versions of poems in Incrementally, then it becomes apparent that meaning is generated by the fundamentals of language as combined with assonance and homophonics. Meaning is shaped by shifts in non-linear or associative thought. Consequently, the shifts in meaning from line to line can compel or trick audiences into hearing more than one single idea or meaning. The language-play in the poems found in this collection, defies inflexibility by delving into multiple meanings.

What you cannot hear in this book-review, but can hear if you take time to listen to one of Penn Kemp’s sound pieces, is her remarkable voice. And if you take the time to listen, you will hear her agile vocal abilities which often feature improvisations. Kemp’s book and her video recordings should include a warning for audiences who will experience multiple meanings through the acoustics that spring forth. This collection may be considered visual poetry within the concrete or optophonic traditions. One might also ask about the musicality of this type of writing. It is connected to chant, and change. Incrementally, this writing teems with an abundance of linguistic and acoustic wonders.

I’ll give the finally “sounding” to Penn Kemp. This is from her poem “Declination”:

w
wh
what
what is
what ism
what is imp
what is import
what is import
taunt
what is import
taunt too
what is import
taunt to woo
what is import
taunt to word
what is import
taunt toward
what is import
taunt to Art

As you can “hear” in this piece, Penn Kemp focuses acoustically on what is important in making a polyphonic artistic statement. It is worth noting that the publisher of this collection is Hem Press which is an independent house, founded in Birmingham, and currently based in Glasgow (U.K). The Press specializes in releasing contemporary literature from around the world. Their publications include narrative verse, visual poetry, experimental memoir, radical translation and much more. In addition to printed material, Hem Press also features Angry Starlings: an imprint which explores and releases sound poetry featuring contemporary performances and compositions. Various Hem Press / Angry Starlings releases can be streamed free of charge, but can also be purchased as high quality MP3s.

 

 

 

 

Karl Jirgens, Prof. Emeritus, former English Dept. Head (U Windsor), and Chair of the Creative Writing Program (U Windsor), is author of five books (Coach House, Mercury, ECW, Porcupine’s Quill), and is published globally (most recently in Japan). Jirgens founded, edited, published Rampike (an international journal of art, writing, and theory) digitally archived at U Windsor. Jirgens edited two books (on painter Jack Bush, and poet Christopher Dewdney), plus, an issue of Open Letter magazine with Beatriz Hausner. His latest book of short fiction, The Razor’s Edge, was a Finalist for the Forward Prize and earned a Bronze medal for the ELIT awards. See: www.jirgens.org  He recently guest-edited an issue of HA&L magazine. His poetry was selected for the anthology Best Canadian Poetry, 2023.

Karl Jirgens : Three poems

 

 

 

Pas de Deux
a Haibun for Alanna Bondar

We pulse at different frequencies. Wavelengths open. Sound travels at varying speeds through water, air. Your body enters, vibrates within an ocean of depths, surfaces.
Regard the liquid sky at night. At times, I hear your voice travel over this lake.
At times, we match frequencies, resonances, sing greetings over distances, a sonic exchange, a reciprocal arrangement between water, stars… connected dots. Night’s moon-sliver, stellar groupings dance above Superior, this inland sea. Aurora Borealis, enters a pas de deux of sky, water. Electrically charged particles freed from the sun’s grip collide with oxygen, nitrogen, an adagio of light. A comet’s pirouette, brings this missive, “Match the frequency of your desire, and you will grasp it.” A liquid dance. We are elemental, two-thirds water, a curving glissade, flying through space. Gravitational waves. Temporal fluctuations. Suddenly, you, beside me, as you were that day. The universe expands with an allegro Sautée, thought’s speed. Light emitted from galaxies beyond our event-horizon remains invisible, awaiting revelation. After the universe’s expansion stops, the sky-drum will pause, in a momentary balance, and with one beat space-time will revisit its origin. Time will flow backwards. We’ll meet again. Ours is an instant in this pas de deux. Water bounces sound. You and I are strands of rain-blown hair, arpeggio flights, stardust memories, singing resonances, a rose at dawn, a single breath in the mind’s ear. Morning. Lakeside. Your breath shapes cold air above Superior’s shore. Recollection skips stones over water. Light bends. Pasts are fictions, memory is liquid, you, that day, spill from memory’s edge. Then the dance concludes.
Look. Hear. At dusk or dawn, moon, stars, planets appear larger, higher than they really are. Light remains visible beyond our horizons.

                     light bends memory
                     when we breathe the morning air
                     through our rain-blown hair

 

 

 

The &MAN
for Iain Baxter&

And he stands in water up to his waist
and he’s holding an ampersand
and it’s a sunny day
and he’s wearing a ball-cap with an & on it
and he’s considered Canada’s 1st conceptual artist
and he’s got an Order of Canada (CC) & OOnt & OBC & FRSC
and he’s called the Marshall McLuhan of the visual arts
and he founded N.E. Thing Company in the 60s
and he trade-marked the & in 2009
and he lives with his wife & collaborator Louise Chance Baxter&
and we’re collaborating on a book about S&wich town
and you don’t need a memor&um to know
his success is not r&nom
it’s maybe slightly off-h&
some think it sc&alous
but nearly all agree his art is gr&
and sets a new st&ard
and his influence will exp&
while offering gr&iloquent profundities
with much ab&on
as fate has m&ated.
From a majority st&point
he’s a key panj&rum

 

 

Silences
for Collette

She asked, “What’s the quietest thing?”
I hedged. She crocheted;
A flower unfolding?
A taste of freedom?
Grass flexing in a gentle breeze?
An infant’s first breath? A soul’s final exit?
Spirit steps walking over autumn leaves?
Waves seen through a telescope?
Long-distance before you drop a coin into the slot?
Butterflies in a sunlit field?
Unspoken words?
Your lover’s pulse in the chambers of the heart?
Spring ice melting on open water?
Snowflakes settling on the outskirts of a quiet forest?
Pine smell on a soft breeze?
Sun warming an open field?
Sub-marine movements of fish?
The vacuum of space?
Wind-blown sand collecting in dunes?
The moment between in-breath and out?
Eyes reading words?
The eleventh hour?
The moment you hang up?
Perhaps time’s fingers sifting sand,
or, thoughts gathering wool…?

 

 

 

 

Karl Jirgens, Prof. Emeritus, former English Dept. Head (U Windsor), and Chair of the Creative Writing Program (U Windsor), is author of five books (Coach House, Mercury, ECW, Porcupine’s Quill), and is published globally (most recently in Japan). Jirgens founded, edited, published Rampike (an international journal of art, writing, and theory) digitally archived at U Windsor. Jirgens edited two books (on painter Jack Bush, and poet Christopher Dewdney), plus, an issue of Open Letter magazine with Beatriz Hausner. His latest book of short fiction, The Razor’s Edge, was a Finalist for the Forward Prize and earned a Bronze medal for the ELIT awards. See: www.jirgens.org  He recently guest-edited an issue of HA&L magazine. His poetry was selected for the anthology Best Canadian Poetry, 2023.