‘calm down clam down’
— jayy dodd
an anointing of sunlight & almond oil
i spoke to Sisyphus this morning & he said fuck this shit
Ritual in poetry can perform both sonic & linguistic work, it is a kind of conjuring. The multimedia-poem deconstructs a morning, or beginning ritual that swells with preparation. Henry-Smith writes: “me resplendent me repentant me repugnant / fattening & sickening”—the triad of sounds & declaration. The imagery of gorging, feeding, each signal a weight. Yet, there is an indelicacy that allows for ‘calm down clam down’ to evade condescension. An attendance to language as clipped & essential, Henry-Smith winks from the side of the stanza & you have to adjust your eyes to catch it. The meditation presented through the poem is only as serene as it needs to be. Also an accomplished photographer, Henry-Smith’s complimentary photograph captures a void covered by a fog. This, too, a kind a conjuring over dewy, cold, blades of grass. The wonder of it all, the curiosity of gluttony, possibility of open field. A practice of fragment & repetition, Henry-Smith’s poem relishes in its hunger.