In The Poetry

Why Did the Jews Kill Jesus, Dad?

Why did the Jews kill Jesus?
‘Cos Jesus was a Jew!
A trouble-making rebel,
And stroppy with it too.

He argued with his betters
An’ ‘ung about with yobs,
Chastisin’ money-lenders
An’ lecturin’ the nobs.

They didn’t take that kindly,
No more they would today,
They fitted him up proper, son,
An’ chucked [...]

Well, the issue at stake was really fascism versus anti-fascism – I think after 1933 after Hitler came to power it became more and more clear that the whole of Europe was threatened by fascism which meant dictatorship, anti-semitism, censorship and lack of intellectual freedom and so therefore my generation was involved in trying to [...]

A Removal from Terry Street

On a squeaking cart, they push the usual stuff,
A mattress, bed ends, cups, carpets, chairs,
Four paperback westerns. Two whistling youths
In surplus U S Army battle-jackets
Remove their sister’s goods. Her husband
Follows, carrying on his shoulders the son
Whose mischief we are glad to see removed,
And pushing, of all things, a lawnmower.
There is no [...]

Emergency Haying

Coming home with the last load I ride standing
on the wagon tongue, behind the tractor
in hot exhaust, lank with sweat,

my arms strung
awkwardly along the hayrack, cruciform.
Almost 500 bales we’ve put up

this afternoon, Marshall and I.
And of course I think of another who hung
like this on another cross. May hands are torn

by baling twine, [...]