Cyclothymia (Julie Maclean)

It floods like shame
             after a lie         

             like a bleeding glacier
             or blue larva

It floods a motherboard
             dropped in water   

It floods leaving trees
             as heads cocooned
             in spider webs 

             in a crown of thorns
             devouring industries

             It floods like fire
             on a Greek island

It floods in slow motion 
             when you roll your car 

             and wait to die
             from awe and curiosity

             after a Goodbye letter
             infection by malware

             in the airborne contagion
             of Madras Eye      it blinds        

             in widening capillaries
             of the neck, the face

             neurones surrender
             then forget

It shakes loose unfamiliar territory—
             like happiness 


Julie Maclean’s poetry, short fiction and reviews have appeared in The Age, The Best Australian Poetry (UQP), Cordite Review, Island, Overland, Poetry (Chicago) and Southerly. She is the author of Tango Boleo, a collaboration with Avril Bradley (Ginninderra Press, 2019), Lips that Did (Dancing Girl Press, US, 2017), To Have To Follow, a collaboration with UK poet Terry Quinn (Indigo Dreams, UK, 2016), Kiss of the Viking (Poetry Salzburg, 2014) and When I saw Jimi, (Indigo Dreams, UK, 2013) which was shortlisted for the Crashaw Prize (Salt, UK) and was joint winner (with Terry Quinn) of the Geoff Stevens Poetry Prize, UK, 2013. She lives on the Surf Coast, Victoria. To find more from Julie visit her website