“Song Eater” by Ruth Thompson
It’s rich here—
flesh, bone,
nice bits falling.
Comes my manta shape—
Song Eater, me—
I swallow what remains to be said.
I heard her letting go.
Then the noise of voracious worms.
But potential music
still clouds around her.
I come to gullet that—
until the sponge of me
is full with it.
Then I swim up,
swollen as a wave—
you can see me out here
if you look—
curved like a hammerhead,
driving at the shore—
that static you hear at night?
that’s me emptying.
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Ruth Thompson Artist Statement:
Ruth Thompson is a poet and conscious channel. She is the author of five award-winning books, most recently Whale Fall & Black Sage (poetry; 2019), and Quickwater Oracles (channeled meditations; 2021). Her new book, Journey Bread: New & Selected Poems, will be published by Broadstone Books in 2024. Ruth’s poetry has won many national awards and has been performed by Shizuno Nasu and other distinguished dancers and musicians. Ruth has a BA from Stanford and a PhD in English from Indiana. She now lives in Ithaca, NY, teaches poetry and meditation, and is the editor/publisher of Saddle Road Press. (ruththompson.net)
