Turnstone Sonnet

On such a day, to be beside the sea,immersed in seafoam rolling up the shore,and no one walking on the strand, just me,inhaling nature’s power, nothing more.Along the coast, the turnstones dip their beaksinto seaweed, fish bones and broken shells;like Sisyphus, they push and shove and tweakat pebbles brought in on the ocean’s swell.I’m not […]

Casting On With Grandmother

She taught me the art of patience,guiding awkward childish fingersto draw a loop around a needle,keep going until too-tight, sweat-soaked woolbecame a square. Knit was the basic stitch, purl soon followed,we explored more complicated structuresmore colourful and designs until, together,we conjured up a rainbowfrom cheap or unravelled yarnthat itched. Later, at parties, that knitterin the […]

Clair de Lune

On a bright summer’s day in Cologne,the leaves infused with rays of sunlighton a tree-lined street, and quite alone,I was delighted to hear moonlighttumbling from the strings of a guitar.I lingered by an open window, listeningto blue notes above the hum of cars,caught in a dream, like glimpsinga crescent moon through cloud.I leaned against the […]

Moon-Shaped

On a frosty night, stars careen, blow themselves to smithereens, and drift like snow in a symphony of moonlight. Play as if about to cry, suffused with inspiration: thrum strings of a moon -shaped guitar, pluck notes like butterflies, bones and birds. Chords have their own tongue. Words are not required, only the silver tunes […]

I, Poet

I need to ease the itch of wordsthat wake me up at night,to sing in a different languagewith imagery and bite. I love to linger in poems whereno other poet has been yet,to feel a smile inside myself  when other people get it. The poetichor of a poemcan drive me to distraction,like spring blossom dancingor […]

Heart-Shaped Spud

I give you a humble potato,imperfect and caked in soil,ready to be bathed in clear water,it’s knobbles caressed and cherished. So versatile is the potato,it can be whatever you will,roasted, mashed, fried. To you I offera dish of Dauphinoise – embellished with garlic and cream, sliced potatocheesy with Gruyere, sprinkled with dill,slow-cooked until crispy on […]

Where or When

Things past and presentare linked by a thread and Iam in the middle holding it all together: my little cat and my witch’s hat,all muted colours, greys and browns. The doors are locked,the table is bare,and I can’t let goto read the notepinned to the wall. I would love to ridea little white horsepast a […]

Today’s Sermon

is marsh birdspouring over reeds and a golden plover’srapid wing beats, and the brief shadowsof small wavelets. Today’s sermon isa soft cacophony drifting from trees,cool air and moss. Today’s sermon ismy willpower disintegratinginto iced creaminess, a swirl of sweetness,a little thrill of pistachio. Today’s sermon isknitting a present for my sister in a rich redthe […]

Us

It was the beginning of us,that weather-buffeted cottageby the North Sea, haunted bysaline spectres and seabirds. Out-of-season virgin beaches wereravaged by wind, foot and paw prints.Seal-stalkers button-eyed us wearilyfrom the waves; they seemed to know about teeth-chattering winters spentwatching the carpet rise and watertrickle down rain-blasted walls. Yetit was cockle-warming:   the damp, smoky crackles […]

A Magical Paradelle

I have captured the magical glow of rowan berries.I have captured the magical glow of rowan berries.Their crimson-orange is the colour of a robin’s breast.Their crimson-orange is the colour of a robin’s breast.Crimson-orange magical glow is the colour I have.A captured robin’s breast the berries of a rowan. The barrier to enchantment is thus removed.The […]