(Edited by Stuart Barnes)
once I bought a box of matches
because someone said it was art
but regardless of what you call it
it’s a box of firesticks & its
potential could explode society
I could set fire to the libraries
follow Marinetti’s path or burn
all the boudoirs to silence
Lautrec’s muses should I ignite
a piano to watch the keys of black
& white melt together to kill
the concept of binary opposition
no, I’ll just stare at the box of matches
place it on a pedestal & revere its
form alone but see no practical
application. Maybe it is art.
Mark William Jackson’s work has appeared in various print and electronic journals including; Best Australian Poems 2011, Popshot (UK), Going Down Swinging, Cordite, Rabbit Poetry, Verity La and Tincture Journal. For more information visit https://markwmjackson.com