Snake in the Grass

It is a grass snake. It is curled in autumn leaves. It is autumn leaves. In it is a curled grass snake. A curled autumn snake? Is it? It is leaves in grass! It is curled in grass. It is a snake autumn leaves. Curled leaves in grass. It is a snake. It is autumn. […]

At the crossroads of summer and autumn

between passing moons even the fish are waiting in cricket silence between passing moons constellations are clearer cosmic dot-to-dots even the fish are waiting beneath frosted leaves the pond hesitates in cricket silence autumn performs her striptease distant thunderclap Kim M. Russell, 9th November 2019 My response to Carpe Diem #1777 Classical and non-classical in […]

Flipped

It was a raging sea-magic kind of day, with thunder clouds and wind-whipped waves that made us mermaids forget salty witches. Oblivious to consequence, caught up in the rumpus, we anticipated handsome seamen snatched by squalls from a schooner’s deck, combed out the tangles in our waist-length hair and spread our glistening fish-tails on a […]

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 […]

Maladroit

My first bra made me self-conscious, all nipples and scratchiness, much like wearing my first bikini (never again!) or my first time skating in hired boots; my first kiss, trying not to crash teeth, dribble saliva or miss target completely; my first (and only) dinner party, or meeting other parents and toddlers when mine was […]

Start of Autumn

fragments of sunset on a warm blustery breeze sudden fall of leaves Kim M. Russell, 22nd September 2019 My response to Carpe Diem Weekend Meditation #103 The Quest for A New Masterpiece Continues: Start Of Autumn, also shared with Poets United at the Poetry Pantry I’m glad to be back for this weekend’s meditation, in […]

The Spilling

Just when I’ve learnt to read the landscape carefully: the flight of birds and growth of plants, the arrangement of furrowed fields and coppiced hedges; now that I’ve mastered its punctuation with quiet glee: the question mark of church, comma of farmhouse, full stop of village and parentheses of trees; nature spills her evening ink […]