In this episode of Australian Book Review's States of Poetry podcast, Jen Crawford reads 'reshelve' which features in the 2016 ACT anthology.

reshelve

in decades past a series of dykes was known as the venice
of the floods themselves, with a sweet sap

once the prey has entered the trap
the leaf closes, and within about 30 seconds
a senior minister has touched
two or three trigger hairs,

bristles on the distinction between
private beliefs and public morality,
his bottomline.

about two weeks later, north of the trap
at the city's shuttered airport,
pseudacteon flies, or antdecapitating flies,
appear to be in the thorax
of the government's profamily stance.

canals divert floodwaters out to the head,
then develop by feeding on the haemolymph muscle tissue.
after about two weeks they cause the ant's head
to grapple with its body

the fly pupates in the billions of dollars
cars are seen floating in a car park

Jen Crawford

'reshelve' previously published in lichen loves stone (Tinfish Press, 2015)

Extracts from 'reshelve' appear in States of Poetry - ACT. You can learn more about States of Poetry and read the full anthologies here.

Read Jen Crawford's biography in 'States of Poetry - ACT'