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Lemn Sissay

• Becky Vincent
• 15 Dec 06, 12:44 PM

has just returned from a mini residency in Arizona. He writes a regular column for Poetry Review, and will be the writer in residence for 2007 at The Royal Festival hall. He has recently judged the John Lewllyn Rhys Prize for literature for The Book Trust, and presented one of Radio 4鈥檚 Fact to Fiction programmes. He's also included in the Today Programme's online audio advent calendar

Here are Lemn's poems from this week:

I always like the first poem to be a clear statement of intent. I have two other poems later in the programme in which to be more experimental. Though I want to leave hints of wordplay as a message of what鈥檚 to come.The rhyming pattern is aa bb. There is one stanza. Here it is. .

Saturday Live

Packed full of treats and sweets it鈥檚 like
You can have your Christmas cake and eat it鈥檚 like
This produces honey and she presents the hive
The hand fits the Glover - it鈥檚 Saturday live

--

1st poem about knitting. I use in the second verse a lot of knitting terminology like 鈥済auge tension鈥�. I wanted to cross stitch this with the dialogue of the mother and son. I also wanted to use sayings which have filtered into our society which use either wool or knitting like 鈥渃lose knit鈥� which didn鈥檛 actually get in. Aside from this I threaded 鈥渃lick click click鈥� throughout the poem as a challenge, a heartbeat, a rhythm, a meditation.

Click Click Click

Click click click what do you want me to knit click click click
for Christmas click click click said the mum click click click
to the son click click click who was click click clicking
on his mouse

I want Click click click Thought the son Click click click
To the mum Click click click My dad Click. Drop stitch
Click Pull up stitch. Knit one slip one pass slip, stitch over
Gauge tension Click click click

I could never pull the wool over your eyes Click click click
Women spun she said Click click click And thought of wolves in sheeps clothing
Click click click It was men that knitted Click click click
We were the weavers Click click click The weavers Click. Click click
While they were the were in the shepherds in the fields fisherman at sea
Reaping what they sowed and sewing what they reaped 鈥� me. Click.

He moved his mouse from side to side And clicked on a web site
Click click click. She hated Christmas Click None of it was worthwhile
Click But to see his smile her sons smile Click click click. Click click click click And his photograph fade into sepia upon her red heart click click.
We were the weavers women were the weavers.

--

I wrote the next poem 鈥渨rapping the present鈥� about the present wrapper. And I made it into a rap. This wrapper begins talking about general wrapping and then takes it to another level and begins wrapping the omnipresent and daytime with night. Though I really enjoyed writing these poems I wish I had more time for them to fully realise themselves. It鈥檚 a bit like what you are seeing the embryonic stages, which in itself, is quite exiting.

Wrapping The Present

I can wrap anything you name it I鈥檒l claim it you鈥檒l exclaim it鈥檚 a gift of beauty
It鈥檚 my duty so shoot me I am the baddest wrapper 鈥�
Yo! I finish it off with a bow and a sprinkle of glitter,
Trust me like you would the babysitter
Leave me with your presents from a chocolates to a pheasant, That鈥檚 Live
I can wrap it in five. I鈥檓 like a bee without a hive
Buzzing on your gifts I can give them the lift they need
Indeed 鈥� like the words of the sage
wrap your present and your present will be freed

Rage I can wrap rage in my wrapping paper cage
Love I can wrap love in my wrapping paper love
Like you wrap the hand with the velvet glove
Open the tender fingers from the clenched fist
And take my gift for I give you this
Each word wrapped in its own ink
You may judge the book by its cover but think
It鈥檚 wrapped with silver paper and I did it
And all I ever wanted to do 鈥� was to give it so you can live it
I can wrap anything you name it I鈥檒l claim it and you鈥檒l exclaim it鈥檚
A gift of beauty it鈥檚 my duty
It ain鈥檛 what you wrap it鈥檚 the way that you wrap it.
Cause I鈥檓 a wrapper
I don鈥檛 have an issue with using tissue if it鈥檚 a present to say I miss you
Haven鈥檛 seen you in years I could wrap a present with my own tears
I could wrap the day the sun I wrap
I could wrap the sky and tie it up and I do
I wrap it in black cloth it鈥檚 true I am the universal wrapper
I can wrap the omnipresent I can wrap the sun and post it to the moon
Every morning you unwrap a new day and there it is 鈥� not a moment too soon - The present
--

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