The Atmosphere In The Room Explained/At The Micless Open Mic

writing the room away I freeze the screen
calling tender angels to the scene replayed:
so much intransigence masquerading

as politeness; my words are honey
but they stop in the first aisle
for those with daggered smiles or the enigmatic

this is reading for the public (a little problematic)
of writers themselves
this is the shore littered with sea shells

where beleaguered sea animals creep away
this is the official occasion with its official invisible say so
hiding meanness unparalleled

in a world of parallel bars where I've come to play
from which I slip and fall oh, anyway all Q.E.D.
and continue reading, after all

and I hide distress
in my old fashioned dress, I love
reading the words of honey

from my poem that flows slowly. viscous
on an excruciating day, sadly, irrevocably
as if over Pompeii

mary angela douglas 2 july 2019