from “A Test of Company”
I
small victories small wars
a famous person
played chess in the woods
whatever repeats whatever
input we have a disappearing
that knows how to proceed
local realities made up
exclusively of their own grammar
but only if their grammar
is voluntary
victorious feelings without victory
sam calls our teams are playing
we are getting older can only hope
for a beautiful result
II
activity
is a truth that conveys
no information a local
threat a distant
possibility autoplay
tabs on tabs on tabs
I buy the hat that my bitmoji had
in a threat of forests a savant
of anger a savant of nothing
to be angry about
a hierarchy of satisfactions
the next activity
the best distraction
it’s never too late to stay the same
III
very few things
are not
warnings
cultural
touchstones
parlor
tricks
the body reacts
to what reacts
to it
a sort of
leverage
a kind
of loyalty
Copyright © 2019 by Chris Tonelli. Originally published in Poem-a-Day on September 16, 2019, by the Academy of American Poets.
“A Test of Company is a kind of tribute to Emmanuel Hocquard, whose recent passing was a big loss. His A Test of Solitude (Burning Deck, 2000) has meant a lot to me over the years, and this manuscript I'm working on is a response to that—my way of eulogizing and expressing gratitude. And also a weird way of communing with him—applying his style and form to my own—like wearing a tie or a brooch of someone you miss very much.”
Chris Tonelli
Chris Tonelli is a founding editor of the independent poetry press Birds, LLC. He is the author of two collections of poetry, most recently Whatever Stasis (Barrelhouse Books, 2018). Chris is the co-director of the NC Book Festival, works in the Libraries at NC State, and co-owns So & So Books in Raleigh, where he lives.