Kersten Christianson
Ode to the Coffee Grinder,
My One True Love By neither rhyme nor rule, I sing twittery exaltations, to painted ravens in frames, a flight of larks without path in an empty kitchen. From poem to word, whole to granular, bean erodes to grain by hand. I could open a window, welcome the wind at my door, set granule to flight to travel zephyr’s crest from rainforest to coffee’s faraway land of origin, somewhere like India, or Peru. Or I could shimmy hip to Nina Simone, to screaming kettle, dip and spin spoon, cream rising the sun in the umbra of a mug glazed to the shade and texture of Bishop’s Beach, early morning sun between squall, cracking night. Aroma of honeysuckle, dark chocolate, lavender, meet the salt of outer coast flood tide; pungent and meandering in its wild. My Old Faithful That there will be uncracked spines and pressed paper pages trails of printed text, tiny ants tracking through grained sand, a steadfast troop trapezing from one margin to the other. That there will be shelves riddled with wormwood paths, gathered regional indie press collections of poets and poets and poets. That there will be fringe-ribboned bookmarks, cards for mailing while on the road, impulse buy items seemingly disarranged and landed by luck or whimsy: pens, pins, stickers, exotic chocolates for nibbling, scented candles like mandarin*pine or salted*basil. That there may be sunlight filtered through crystal window bling, bouncing prisms into the mosh pit of my joy when I happen upon a well-worn copy of Lorna Crozier, Patrick Lane, or Susan Musgrave verse to ride shotgun home with me. |
Alaskan Poet, Moon Gazer, Raven Watcher, Northern Trekker, Teacher. Kersten Christianson derives inspiration from wild, wanderings, and road trips. Kersten is the poetry editor of Alaska Women Speak. She has authored Curating the House of Nostalgia (Sheila-Na-Gig, 2020), What Caught Raven’s Eye (Petroglyph Press, 2018), and Something Yet to Be Named (Kelsay Books, 2017). Kersten lives with her daughter in Sitka, Alaska and enjoys road trips, bookstores, and smooth ink pens.