23 February 2024
26 October 2025
submitted for the Gwen Harwood Poetry Prize 2025 but not on the short list announced 7 February 2025

when less is less

by just scaling compute
ay, there’s the rubber, the

depth charge that perturbs
the seal and the whale, cannot

rule the world but disassemble
the brains of its hearers

they, too, flail the way of all flesh
deep into glaring dark

the composite, enshittified night
gawd help us – to believe for one macro

that any less could be
more…

the Cartesian cleft
through which we travel to the stars

the web beneath the sea
upon which we creep

the speed of light
splattering our speech

with earthly similitude
deepfakes, wise clouds

the watchers on the hill
lie here o’ertopped, entranced

Saul stands aside, Stephen
does not dodge the stones