Poem of the Week - ‘This is Not a Love Poem’ by Liv Torc
This is not a love poem
it’s a note on the fridge
that I didn’t bother to write
because we don’t have any post-its
or alphabetised fridge magnets
or marker pens.
This is not a hot flush decomposing on paper
and I’m not totally consumed
by an oxytocin monsoon
unable to drag my attention
from the mere mention
of your name
now that at least part of our names
are the same.
This is not an apology
even though I am putting our stuff in a poem again
and I forgot to push the bar stools in last night
and I know how much that annoys you
especially in the dark.
This is not a begging letter
for more dirty, animalistic, eye contact sexcapades
and less flatulence inducing vegetable stews
it’s not that personal
or that rude
but it is will to be misconstrued.
This is not a moment of appreciation
for your incredibly well-balanced and sensitive support
for my never ending weight loss endeavours
painful gynaecological furniture extractions
and fickle Gemini superficialities
it’s just some words
unwilling to go unheard.
This is not a love poem
so don’t you dare get excited
and rush home to read it.
only to feel unintentionally let down
despite the obvious warning in the title.
This is not a desperate note
to tell you that I am secretly plotting my suicide
so if you unexpectedly die
I won’t have to waste precious time being alive
knowing you’re not.
We have already agreed not to die…
and this is not a piece of dramatic irony
borrowed from a tragic future.
It’s a note on the fridge.
with an obvious romantic subtext
reminding you to pick up some soya milk.
Not a love poem, but a wonderfully layered reflection on the state of a relationship and the ways that we think about them (that just happens to use the word ‘love’ quite a few times). Liv Torc’s poetry has something for everyone - it’s fun, philosophical, earthy, spiritual and compulsively readable all at once. She is an experience spoken-word performer, and the energy of her live shows can be clearly felt in her latest collection Show Me Life (Burning Eye, 2015), which is where out poem this week comes from.