The h2g2 Poem: To understand maths

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The journal thread known as Cactuscafe's Daydream Journal continues to attract poets, dreamers, and thinking-type persons to a discussion of everything from sources of inspiration to, well. . . maths. Minorvogonpoet has chosen to sum up some of this erudition in a suitable form – namely, poetry. We are in awe.

Someone scratching their head in front of a page of maths theory.

To understand maths

To understand maths, go camping
in Cornwall. Pick blackberries, share
nights of wine and baked beans.
To calculate the moon’s density,
polish your inner sundial, watch
the truth appear behind your eyes.
To consider the habits of seagulls,
recite poetry into a voice processor,
as they crowd the urban rooftops
at night, only to depart at dawn.
To tell a story, look for a ghost
in a shirt of floral design,
as you count the butterflies
in a dusty summer, but beware
the slow gin, sloe gin.
To tame the daydream ghosts,
play music after midnight,
watch them celebrate and dance
in stripes and cuban heels.
To create new patterns of beauty,
check the balance of the world’s pain,
that sings with a high pitch, uneasy
frequency. Out of mush and static
come a million smiles, azure whispers
wrapped in an air in G minor.
A woman reading poetry in front of floral background.
Poetry and Stories by Minorvogonpoet

Minorvogonpoet

24.09.12 Front Page

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