Overcast on the Norfolk Coast

Ominous under a rain-speckled sky,

Lilac-coloured flowers of salsify

Bloom among the grasses

In moody bird-haunted marshes,

Where oystercatchers pipe on the tideline.

In the morning drizzle, on a ghostly coast,

Wind jangles masts and rigging on boats,

Whistles in sea-bleached branches and reeds,

And chattering sedge warblers root in the weeds.

On a beach at low tide between wave and wind,

Bare toes splay in mud and sand,

A sea-washed pebble glistens cold in your hand,

Inhaling the tang of sea salt and spray:

An overcast North Norfolk day.

 

© Kim M. Russell, 2016

Image found on www.norfolkbirds.com