Three Poems
I-44
for Thom Eichelberger-Young
down the Anheuser plant a current of geese rushes the long plain and sympathize with the present
the moment of which is a moment to run
to say “we are open to” is not to say we understand the aperture of sky or a current presents itself
in the moment and the goose formation runs at a slant
in the present we serve concrete along with soft serve and a new cavity cooled face
their v shapes an engine letter form a downward gaze the engine’s thirst for touch is a formation
of gas sinister and shapeless
we serve busch lights & cantaloupe down the closed road leads way down to Rolla
and then we understand ourselves as we get we belong and get we deserve to be made what
belongs to take
this rest stop deserves a bed that is open to the rest of our exhaustion and
if ours present in a metallic bed
the geese look down upon
Drive First, Then Turn
head there and going
sunbather, battery flower
what’s impressed on the road?
there is no destination:
turn first, then turn toward this time—
who art directed this lovely pile?
lay there as planetary
check-ins and shutdowns
knowing no sadness:
turn first and turn toward your drive—
I’ve seen no precedent to your landscape
—drive first and turn again—
what path is there beyond the blight?
drive first, then turn toward this time.
Orientation
Some of us struggle with integrity
A tendency to shed
Small parts pose a hazard
Everyone is concerned, so it’s kind of like a shared feeling
We swallow it together
When the recipient of a conduct I usually dissolve into the pool of global angst
Some of us live there
Their skin is wrinkled and these are reptiles
The water is warm but I really need to get the fuck out
∩
Léon Pradeau is a smuggler of transatlantic poetry. He is the founding editor of Transat' and the author of a few poetry objects, including vaisseau instantané/instant shipping (Paris: Les murmurations, 2024), and a translation—with cj nizard—of Cécile Mainardi’s Superliquid Water (Santa Fe: Prroblem Press, 2026). His French translation of Kai Ihns’ Of is forthcoming in 2027. He lives in Chicago.