nowhere to hang the moon and stars fireworks and bonfire sparks no colour to express the dog of depression no clarity of words in books no shadows in the sleep-soaked room at night the pair of complicit magpies haunting the garden (two for joy) would be all white their once glossy jet feathers and impertinent […]
Category: Poems
A poem to sum up my feelings in this post.
Sharp Teeth
A flash of amber eyes in the twilight of the woods is answered with a growl from my own throat. I don’t claim to be a good mother, but I can howl and have a fierce heart, red as a hood. I gather them in the heat of my lupine love again, child and grandchild […]
Cyborg Skin revisited
From the egg-like membrane of her head to the crescent-mooned toes on her feet, her skin was yielding and not synthetic; soft and warm, it responded to my touch. She was programmed to be forever childlike but she possessed an adult logic, a precociousness lacking innocence, as if she knew my every thought; a hint […]
Your Voice
I have heard songbirds’ over- lapping whistles, the whisper of sparrow wings wheeling on the breeze, raindrops bouncing off dusty autumn paths, and the rattling somersaults of the last leaves from trees. I’ve listened to the sun sizzle into evening, bats flicker in cooling twilight air, snowflakes kissing a frozen window- pane, a cat purring […]
One small voice in the shift between October and November
For days, the steady pounding rain drowned out the poetry that bubbled in my soul; my small voice hobbled, stuck in the mud of an old-fashioned October. But this morning, on the cusp of November, bright stained-glass shadows dappled the sodden grass, where unexpected sun illuminated the willow in the garden disrobing yellow leaves before […]
Passing Rain
The echo of distant rain started to muffle the air and, all too soon, distance was lost to cloud closing in like wet sheep, and sheeting rain that dripped and drummed, persistent and loud on the roof. The willow in the garden blazed with green moss and elaborate dripping lichen, while I stood dazed at […]
Winter Apologia
I forgive the winter darknessthat carries deep withinthe unspoken promiseof the electricity of spring.Every dancing snowflake,each frost-muted twig,stows trickles of bird song,brightly budding sprigsof snowdrops, bluebells, cowslipsand wood anemones,and bursts of fragrant blossomin hedgerows and trees. Kim M. Russell, 23rd October 2019 My response to Poets United Midweek Motif: Forgiveness Sumana brings us forgiveness as […]
Through the Eyes of a Child
We watch a big blue tractor rumble by, his small body in my arms, straining to see more. Wide eyes spot two cock pheasants down by the gate, he can’t wait; his small hand grabs his mother’s and they’re off on a hunt, and find pheasants, swans, horses and boats – and chickens! We visit […]
Missing the Point
From mid-autumn until the end of winter,each day begins and ends with night,not morning’s gentle lightening or splinterof tea-time twilight, although sunsetstill kaleidoscopes in clear October skies.We live from day to day: wake up,rise and read about incessant liesover the rim of a tea or coffee cup.Then it’s time to catch a bus or train,ignoring […]
Portrait in Chalk and Charcoal
He leans into the pavement, close enough to kiss the cold hardness of it, squinting through a dusting of charcoal. There’s a smear on his cheek that points to his ear, red with cold. He has coalminer’s fingers and a cough that rattles his ribs. The jacket across his shoulders has seen better days, but […]
