Afterwards

 death

a life
 finished 

all sewn up 

the final seam
that joins the edges
to make a ball?

(who will catch me? throw me?)

a bubble gum ball
that falls from the machine

(who will hear the gear grind?

the wheel turn?)

who will watch it? hold it?
 open it?

find inside
the faded fortune ticket 

see luck? 

or love? 

or riches?

my life inside the sphere

fulfilled

or failed?

condensed

finite

fin

august  2018

For Rose on her birthday 2018

one year of your life 

one year of mine

and woven
between us
forever

this fabric
our journey in time 

July 17th 2018

Drought


spade shallow

earth so dry

rock

and granite hard blue sky

rack and rapture

dust kick die

and all this thirst

a savage brittle

cracken throated cry

June 11th 2018

Foul Anchor



cold north-east wind dropped
 wind clock hands all stopped

the chorus
still silent
no tick tock tick tock

and road of dry lavender
warm mud Nene warm
winding through summer
now that it has come

16th MAy 2018

Cold Nene

Queen Anne's lace

on St.John's Bank

this cold white Wednesday's

palest green

and cold the choppy full tide swell

of potter's pink

the Nene

20 April 18

lavender mud flats all bank long

Nene tide out the summer sun

and lorries run rip roar rip roar

April, England, Evening

soft throat the air pipe hollow

Ring dove cuckoo ring dove coo

and blackbird piccolo