If you stand

If you stand still
Anywhere on the soil
you may be able to sense
Deep in the mantle
rips open the skin
A 6400 kilometer fissure
carved up the continent
Every year birds use it as their flight path
patched into a quilt
Bottoms out
onto one of the rifts
From the air looks like a series of landscapes
in geometric patterns of irregular squares
Green has a tropical juiciness
and a deceptively fertile glow
The capital is almost dead centre
wrapped into its highest point
built into the natural fabric
Pop out like blisters
from the belly
Creep onto the sides
people spend their days
unmapped, wormy, carrying water, produce, and
children
the safety of some that sweep across
can stand and watch
the exhausting
industry