In The Poetry

This poem was written for the birth of my cousin’s daughter.

And let us say

That if the linen flapped too loud
The washing line was taken down

And if a shopdoor bell was rung
Its tongue was held with cotton thumbs

And if a milkfloat tattled by
It was flagged down and held aside

And should the rivers drown us out
We had [...]

In this poem, a farmhand is coming off the land at the end of the day, reflecting on whether they have done enough. It’s written for someone who, at the time of writing, was leaving work due to ill health.

The Fielder

The day is late, later than the sun.
He tastes the dusk of things and [...]

There is a geological principle of ‘isostasy’ which, dubiously summarised, suggests that if the pressure from above is equal to the pressure from below then where they meet is a point of vast strength and stability. This poem takes the proposition a cheeky step further, that by the same principle the tip of a wave [...]

Wintering

If I close my eyes I can picture him
flitting the hedgerow for splints
or a rib of wood to kindle the fire,

or reading the snow for whatever
it was that came out of the trees
and circled the house in the night;

if I listen I can hear him out
in the kitchen, scudding potatoes,
calling the cat in; [...]