Gloved hands grippedthem tightly, wandsof metal wire, seemingly fragileyet full of powerful magic. Lips rounded in oohs,we were not old enoughto understand the chemistryof oxidisers and binders. We knew only bright sparks,patterns we drew in the dark. Kim M. Russell, 20th October 2025 This Monday is a sparkler of a day at the dVerse Poets […]
A poem in Penstricken
I have a poem in the autumn issue of Penstricken, which is out today with the theme of Machinery, and is available to read on the website for free at https://ww.penstricken.com/machinery or to buy as a paper copy at https://www.lulu.com/shop/justin-alcala-and-robert-atkins-and-maggie-bayne-and-lesley-tarrant-belcourt/penstricken-4-machinery/paperback/product-rmr75dv.html?q=machinery+penstricken&page=1&pageSize=4 My poem, entitled ‘Any More Fares Please?’, is on page 83. I hope you check […]
Ilse
As much as dill and pickled cucumbers,it’s the cherries that I remember most,growing on two trees outside my window,dark red, fragrant and so sweet. I remember, too, the blossoms every spring.As well as dill and pickled cucumbersin huge jars lined up in the cellar,you preserved cherries in alcohol for winter. From the fresh cherries that […]
Haunting Aimlessly
The antiquities museum is bereftonce all the visitors have left, until October moonlight breaksthe darkness, shaking halls awake. He sits upon a muzzle-less horse,the rider’s lost his head of course. He cannot ride, dismount or stand,he has no legs, feet, arms or hands. Moon-bathed they start to come alive,horse and rider spectrally strive to canter […]
Memory is the Happiness of Being Alone
with the familiar heftof the tome,the unique cover,anticipation of what’s inside. It’s the imprintof fingers on paperand the gentle flickof a page. Print marks magicallyconjure meaning,images, sounds and emotionsin the happy quietude of alone. It’s transportationto another place or time,into the mind of someoneyou will never touch, but you can love and respect,despise, accept or […]
Feeling October
October days are feeling softer,the day beginning with scarves of mist and dewdrops, the sky now grey and filled with raindrops and the leaves like chameleonschanging from green to yellow to orange to red.A fleet of tractors rumbles up the muddy road rattling the windows. First wood smokedrifts skyward with the chattering crows. Kim M. […]
Behind the Sofa
Behind the sofa,among dust and fluff,is the perfect place. It’s just enoughto hide and keepscary monsters at bay. I suppose you thinkit’s a game we play,but let me tell you… it’s not a gamewhen they go BOO! Kim M. Russell, 6th October 2025 It’s Monday again, and that means writing quadrilles at the dVerse Poets […]
Under My Umbrella
As days get shorter and colder, weather wetter and wilder, I’m back in the habit of packing an umbrella whenever I leave the house. Your father laughs at me. “You’ve a perfectly good raincoat with a hood,” he says. “Umbrellas are dangerous when crossing roads.” “So are hoods.” I kiss him goodbye and emerge into […]
A Gathering of Wise Women
Misunderstood throughout historywe were tortured, drowned, burntand now, amid the intensityof climate change, plague and war,we have seen humankind at its worst. Forget the shamans,Mentors and Chirons,all male, muscle-bound,bristling with testosterone. You need us wise women,us Earth mothers who listento sky, air and soil beneath our feet,the quickening of the seasons’ beat.We understand the textures […]
Frame
Vincent painted views overand over again of the asylum gardenbeyond his window frame, so in love with autumn’s colours,unable to refrain, admitting to his brother Theoit would be the same every day, until autumn came tumblingfrom the trees. He would never grow weary of garden,sky and leaves. Kim M. Russell, 1st October 2025 I have […]
writing in north norfolk 