Apologies on her behalf


︎︎︎ Philip Traylen

︎ Sept 6, 2025

It’s all entirely unbearable to me, hence
my love for it. I’m talking about you, of
course, about life, the life, a life, as if
the word preceding life on the page
might one day
adjust its meaning. Until then, however,
we continue to rut
in the marshes, to pawn
implausible species of would-be bird
to each other across the distance,
if we find one (a distance, I mean,
bird-ideas are everywhere). Wait, is it
the French who like comparing the breasts
to two birds seeking shelter from the
gays?
She told me
to say that, I wanted to say
gaze, I swear
on my mother’s life (if
you want to adjust the meaning
of the word life place
the word mother before it
on the page).



Philip Traylen is a writer from Wales. oldoldoldoldnew on Substack.