ust under the surface the moth grub tunnels and

when the tree sheds the old bark new secrets

are revealed, ciphers begging to be broken, sacred scriptures

we read like quantum equations or calculus solutions

Ogmograptis scribula reveals her soul in the ink-sap of the tree

she maps ancient songlines for us to follow

rivers, gullies, rocky outcrops, spinifex trails, crystalline ranges

her ancient glyphs which we have failed to decode

Eucalyptus haemastoma Rosetta lend me your body

tell me terrible things, let the world finish its inconsequential stuff

What geheimis do you share with little sister moth?

Arboreal-cursive teach to me your dreamtime stories

Christopher Konrad is a Western Australian writer and has many poems and short stories published  including several books of poetry and a collection of short stories. He was winner of the Tom Collins poetry prize (2009 and 2018). His latest book is a collection of short stories, The Voyeur (Balboa Press, 2021).

Email: voegelin1144@gmail.com