Joe Carrick-Varty

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In Memory of My People

so i’m at this party         and it’s not just any party
it’s a spider party         which is to say
everyone here is a spider         and not just that
i’m at a party with every spider         i ever swallowed
in my sleep         and we’re all standing around
sharing anecdotes         until it’s not a party at all
but a flat viewing and i’m         stepping into a room
someone died in         which must be such a normal
thing to do         to die in a room to die between
walls except i don’t know this yet         i’ll probably
never know         the estate agent describing the windows
the quality of light         at a certain time of day
and somewhere         a forest floor is becoming
very damp and somewhere         the shock
of a frozen lake and what if i told you a         secret
what if now feels         like the time to share
we’re at a party after all         a spider party
and the vibe is actually decent         and yeah
maybe i’m drunk and brave         but look
a spider         is pouring Jameson and look
there’s even a         beanbag and what if tonight
friends         my beautiful dead friends
we are alive         together again

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JOE CARRICK-VARTY is a British-Irish poet, writer and founding editor of bath magg. His debut collection, More Sky (Carcanet Press, 2023), was shortlisted for the T. S. Eliot Prize.