I remember whenI first saw you,how fragile you were,and so small,bundled up in yourtoo big babygrow. I held you, cuppedin both palms. I knew that for eachbreath you took I heldmine alittle longer, a candleworthof breath, like being underwater, feeling air trickle through thepores of my skin,just enoughto make me feel as lightas you. I […]
Tag: Daughter
Covid Celebration
hesitation before the grip of winter’s chillalmost all the leaves are goneexposing branches to a cloudless skyand pale light of a more distant sun isolation I watch it from the windowcold glass between me and the worlda video call heralds the promiseof a smiling face celebration a Sunday birthday this yearfour decades of being my […]
Walking down the front path
The same age as me when I left, no older,you got in a stranger’s car with a new start in sight, a friend’s arm around your shoulder,steering you towards a life of which I was no part. The rear view was blocked, I moved a little closerto stand on the pavement, felt the drop of […]
That Look
I sat among the guests on bales of prickly straw, the afternoon sun hot on heads and backs, the expanse of Tuscan sky a perfect blue. And so, daughter, were you, perfect in your wedding dress, in your hands a pastel bouquet and single flower in your hair. I admit, I shed a tear, feeling […]
Anticipation
A project for the summer, you said, shaking the yellow curls on your head and, opening up your sweaty hand, offered me hard seeds with zebra bands. The teacher had given you a little sack and, like Jack’s mother, I was full of doubt, prepared to throw them out. Where would we grow sunflowers in […]
Sonnet on the Marriage of my Only Daughter
In the coldness of a November night, When the full moon shone with silvery light, I gave birth to a fairy foundling girl Of violet eyes and finely-spun gold curls. A sea nymph building castles on the shore, A petulant teen trouncing out the door, Tugged at my heart on her first day at school, […]
Trying on a Wedding Dress
I have been trying for ages to encapsulate in a tanka the experience of going shopping for a wedding dress with my daughter. I hope this does it justice. The wedding isn’t until May and I’m sure there will be plenty to write about then. Of course, I can’t include a picture! Champagne froth […]
A day off from poetry and stories…
to help my daughter with some wedding things. We have an appointment today for a wedding dress fitting for Ellen.We haven’t seen the dress since I paid the deposit in July, so it’s going to be exciting for both of us. I am also helping her with some ideas for writing her vows and a […]
Memories of a day at Newgrange
For some reason, the light this morning took me back to a day over thirty years ago. Later comment: I have just read the first six lines and realised the order is wrong. I have changed it now. Newgrange When I took you there Looking for inspiration In an ancient monument Older than Stonehenge And […]
Of daughters and fairies
After a much needed weekend with my lovely daughter, I have returned from London to a dull, damp Norfolk. I am blogging again and wrote the following poem this morning. Daughter Where is the elfin child, The fairy foundling Of the violet eyes And finely-spun golden curls? She arrived on a November night, Illuminated by […]
writing in north norfolk 