Penn Kemp offers a poem in aftermath of disaster in Japan

London’s Poet Laureate, Penn Kemp believes “in the power of art to shape emotion into action for change, and help, in this case, for Japan.”
To wit, she has offered this poem, “Facing the Epicentre” from her DVD entitled Luminous Entrance, which calls for action to address climate change to view the full poem in the i London app, choose view in browser.


The time has now come when Earth
forces work us over. The day sparks.
How can we stabilize the Earth? When
she quakes, we too tremble in fear and
resentment. (How dare our mother shake
us off, like a bitch come in from the rain?)
Just when we had our lives organized,
our houses arranged the way we like,
our business minded, our minds at ease.
On vacation.
Just then. Foundations heave.
No leg to stand on. Upright is not
an option.
What is happening below the waves?
“When the ocean floor has burbled
cartographers must draw new maps.”
We still tremble on uneven ground.
Dreams caution us to acquiescence,
acceptance, equilibrium. We respond
with surface calm but the network
of nerve trembles with the earth.
Inner and outer hang on a thread.
The North Pole shifting an inch
makes the Earth rounder. May we too
round out our differences.