reconstructing a rabbit

take something sharp
& begin

     observe

the crescent curve of his back
folded fullmoon     the rabbit world opens
     thickly; darkly bound these stitches

          you are bookbinder     cartographer
          historian: this body of work to be studied

the rabbit measures by its teeth
where all wisdom is stored     how it discovers
its existence     identity
     kit & kindle
                    its rabbit-proof

remove the incisors     these are your luck
the feet may be soft & more sightly
          yes, but they are
          merely decoration

knowledge is the greater fortune

          ask the rabbit on the tall ship
          the rabbit with the pocketwatch

          (((((

the ribs like bows unstrung     beware the sharp end
there will be no fairytale wound

          sleep awhile, if you will
          but expect no handsome visitor

its capped heart a flask for
what?     linseed oil?
     fodder for careful creatures
     ears raised & a phosphate thump

label the provinces:

     calcaneus     carpus     cranium     femur
     ilium     mandible     maxilla     phalanges
     radius     scapula     sternum     tibia

               a rabbit atlas

Sarah K. Bell

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i am making my way through the best australian poems 2009 that i've had since, um, 2009. so far there's not much i like, but i shall persevere.

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