Joachim Matschoss – Clusters of Time

Matschoss profile Dec 2020

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Live Encounters Poetry & Writing, Volume Two, December 2020.

Joachim Matschoss, born in Germany, is now living in Melbourne/Australia. He is a playwright, poet and Theatre-maker. His Theatre Company, ‘Backyard Theatre Ensemble (BYTE)’ presents diverse pieces of theatre nationally and internationally. Joachim’s poetry is published in Australia, Germany, the United Kingdom and the USA, most recently Sidewalk Theatre and Travel with Myself.  He published a travel journal in Australia (Away with me) and a novel in the USA (Dead River Oaks). A book about theatre and travel (Rain Overnight) has been published in India.


Clusters of Time

there was a time
not so long ago
when coffeeshops were full of people
smiling, chatting, reading, wasting time
I was on the run as usual
but still contemplating
to exploit two minutes of my precious time
I was ready to carve out
one hundred and twenty seconds out of a full day
or did I call it full-on
each day was always packed tight
cluster of time on top of cluster of time
it was like that back in January 2020
but these two minutes meant a latte
if nobody would speak to me and I could pay cashless
but baristas were chatty back then –

now the cafes are shut
and time’s maiden name is sourdough and banana bread
should I dress the dog up as a cat
or write a poem
something to do
in these days of endless time


Stratford Sky

people en masse in quarantine
in this long and lonely winter
everything
feels hopeless
as the world is on fire
or in flood
ecological grief
climate depression
are newly minted terms
for very real states of being –

looking at news reports
it all seems incredibly
irredeemably bleak –

but hope
is just above me
a crisp stratford winter sky
gentle azure blue light
and the swans on the avon
enjoy their river
as any other day


Advice to a Child  2020

put on your shoes
play outside
tiptoe through the puddles
dance with unicorns
and make a wish

please keep your dreams safe
and deep in your pockets

soon life will be different
something, not human
will replace
what you took for granted

breath will be short
and fear with demon thoughts
will rapture what once was
nothing
but a small rumble
in time


The Melodies of Moss

a little breeze stirs up the forest
to sing of spring dreams
brimful with green softness
as melodies ripple the skin
of this sweet earth

lay still
be mouse-silent
and breathe
just breathe


© Joachim Matschoss