Dear telephone booth
across the street, I’ll never forget the way you glowed
like a glass
of expired milk no one wanted to drink, how you rang
once late at night
asking to speak.
I remember you
as a wind chime,
some human voice was your gentle distant breeze.
Remind us when
you ring that no one is ever alone, remind us how
our only isn’t all there is, our only isn’t everything.
About this Poem
image by Jason Polen from Gilmore Reproductions-Kingston, who facilitated the printing and installation of all the pieces included in Ontario Street: A Vibrant Spaces Project. Used here with permission.
“Dear Telephone Booth” was written specifically for the City of Kingston’s August 2019 Ontario Street: A Vibrant Spaces Project event. The event focused on “the potential of creative placemaking in Kingston; leveraging arts and culture to re-imagine public spaces and foster community collaboration and shared enjoyment within them.” Five poems from local poets were installed at various locations along Ontario Street, and will remain in place indefinitely until they are eventually eroded by the weather. For photos of the other installations visit the four most recent Poetry Blackboard posts, below.
Jason’s most recent collection of poetry at KFPL is his 2016 Hard Work Cheering Up Sad Machines. You can find more of his poetry and his fiction in the KFPL catalogue.
