Cold Tea at the End of August

Abstract

Cold Tea at the End of August Kristian Radford (bio) if you take care of the art your sister, Lifetakes care of the human part.—John Forbes I finish working (from home) for the dayand take my cup of tea (cooling now)and John Forbes's Collected Poems into the backyardthe cat following me out from a distance the clouds to the west are heavy and shark-grey— a little shocking after such a nice weekend—and the ground's still damp from this morning's rain (the chair, at least, has dried) Luna steps out nervously wary after yesterday's skirmish—she was sniffing around the corner of the yardwhen the burly cat from next door appeared suddenly atop the fenceglaring down with haughty fatnesssending her scrambling back into the house more gazelle than cheetah bounding loopily over the thick grass (lockdown gives nature time to rejuvenatebecause I can't go to the in-laws' house to borrow the mower) [End Page 102] she trots down the side of the house then reappearsdistracted now from reading I watch as she licks a damp spot on the concrete where the hose has drippedthen picks up one of the petals from the neighbours' cherry blossom tree (they began falling last week almost as soon as they appeared transient as snowflakes loosened by the wind)she chews a couple of times then swallowsnonchalant it's starting to cool down fast now (like my tea) and Luna has had enoughshe slips back inside watches me through the window just as the rain comes back to threaten John's oeuvre I swig the rest of the tea and repair to the couch where I write this poem and Luna comes overplants herself like a pumpkin in my lapboth of us urgently reaching for something we know is here, right now like a ripe fruit, or a baby ready to catch [End Page 103] Kristian Radford Kristian Radford was born in Sapporo, grew up in Adelaide, and now lives in Melbourne. His poetry and fiction have been published in Meanjin, Rabbit, Meniscus, Cordite Poetry Review, Communion, and other journals. He has a first-class honors degree in English literature from the University of Queensland, where he received a University Medal. He works as a secondary school teacher in the northern suburbs of Melbourne, teaching English and math. Copyright © 2022 Wayne State University Press