A dull thud, the blue tit drops to the patio, and Anna hastens to open the French door before lazy cat George thinks a snack has dropped from heaven. She cradles the tiny, feathery body in her bare hands. No heartbeat. But a glimmer of sky is reflected in the jet of its eye. Anna’s […]
Blue Period
As in Pablo Picasso’s depressive art, the long path through a winter dark with anguish, despair and frailty is a spectrum of indigo melancholy: from blue-tinged ice, cobalt and navy to the hopefulness of aquamarine, it echoes our blind faith in the seasons. And then, suddenly, pieces of sky drop to earth in hosts of […]
Neon Days
I struggled with a poem for the April issue of Visual Verse, mainly due to my impaired eyesight after two cataract operations. I’m currently wearing reading glasses borrowed from my husband, which are the wrong prescription but do make a bit of a difference. The image in the May issue, Volume 9 Chapter 8, is […]
Persistence of Vision (a cento)
The future was a beautiful place, once. I held you that June morning when you opened your eyes; we were seeing one another after seasons of darkness. Like some watcher of the skies. I consider how my light is spent, look into my glass and view my wasting skin; vision may be just a part […]
Childhood in Monochrome
Loving grandparents were always there to house me, feed me, teach me, grandmother in charge of my care while my parents struggled daily. Now only a handful of monochrome photographs remain as tattered ghosts of the past, but my love of home, stories, poems and music still cast their light on the present. They are […]
Trapeze of Life
Being human is a circus trick, a t i g h t r o p e w a l k between now and then, a flourish, and back again. juggling swords, eating fiery words, the highs and lows of the flying trapeze, the bearded lady’s s l o w s t r I p t […]
Like a Duck
Life is a garrulous river glinting through wisps of cloud. A glimpse of life through cloud and I feel like a duck treading water, scattering sparkles on the water like van Gogh’s canvas of glowing stars. I swim against the tide of stars, drag my heavy body to a grassy bank and relish the respite […]
Reflection
The image in the March issue of Visual Verse, Volume 9 Chapter 6, is a stunning photograph by Vony Razom, which has inspired amazing writing, with only one hour to produce 50-500 ekphrastic words. I recommend reading everything, starting at page 1. My poem is on page 83 and, if you want to read it first, you […]
Spring in Speech Marks
My life has been steeped in chromaticity, punctuated by leaves and buds, but me, I’m still curled up like an apostrophe suspended between seasons. In the green garden, pointillistic blue flowers bloom as a cloud of full stops, and you surprise me like an exclamation mark, true to your pink gregariousness, bringing light and heat […]
Breath of the Norfolk Broads
I was standing by water, dreaming of the summer, when she appeared, a wherryman’s daughter on a black-sailed trader among the whispering reeds. A grebe on her shoulder, a spring breeze in her hair, she brought it with her on the breath of the Broads: the tinkle of laughter, swans swimming in sunshine, and the […]
writing in north norfolk 