I write poems for personal pleasure, and to commission. My poems have appeared in a wide range of anthologies and journals, including: #MeToo (edited by Deborah Alma, Fair Acre Press); Writing Motherhood (edited by Carolyn Jess-Cooke, Seren); Inside the Bell Jar ; The Rialto; The Emma Press Anthology of Dance; Artemis; and Aesthetica Creative Writing Annual 2017. The illustration at the top of the page is by Chris Thornley, to illustrate my poem ‘Holding On’, which appeared in Popshot Magazine:
Holding on
After you died,
I filled your clothes with air
and took you walking.
Inflated, you were new-born, elated:
a dashing, headless dandy,
all grand gesture:
a sweep of shirt sleeve and trouser leg.
My mouth had so much to say,
it ran ahead,
waiting for us before each bend,
tongue wagging, an eager dog.
It was on Waterloo Bridge that we met
the rush-hour automatons head-on.
I should have let go in the crush
but, headstrong, I clung on
through hit after hit,
until you were deflated:
a puddle of clothing,
a melted snowman.
Next time, we’ll go at night,
fly kites on the Heath,
consider the weightlessness
of space, the endless sky,
the aching in my chest.
aw… this is heartbreaking… beautiful, but haunting. i feel bereft. wow. thank you for sharing this elegy. x
Thanks so much, katmphotography! Visited your blog: loved the visceral imagery.
thank you Rosie. if i like someone’s writing, i always tell them why… it’s only fair. why would we share our writing in a public forum if not for trying to engage with others on some level… x
Thanks, much “mmm” inside as I contemplate people I have lost. I love the imagery of the inflated clothing, really hits home.
Thank you, Harini/Heather! Lovely of you to read it and feed back 😀