Silken sunlight

Stood among the silken sunlightgrasses shimmer goldenrays caressing a million seeds in the evening stillness. Peace in the momentof the final breath,before the sun setsand the cool of the summer eveningdrifts over the meadowto whisk awaythe final sigh of the day.

A handful of sky

The bluest summer skyin the palm of my hand. Cloudless beautyof sunshine warmth. Echoes of untold memoriesand another hand heldamid the humof a love filled meadow.

Cog calm

CogsScrewsVorticesGreaseMechanical marvelsitting outsidestillsilentfor most of its life.Yet filled with potentialfor movementfor powerto open the sluiceheld tightwith the weight of flood water. There’s somethingincredibly calmabout still machineryas if the potential for noisefor metal against metalis simply pausedlike a creature poisedready to runalmost quivering with anticipationwaiting for the flag to dropthe gun to go offand it’s potential […]

Summer snow

Sun heavybeating downoppressive heatalmost a buzzing in the airas the world around me strainsto breath hot air. Yet the world I stand inis full of snowwhirling in the airas if caught in a stormyet barely a wisp exists. White flakes surround meclouds of potentialthe seeds of new lifemerge and flowfrom the Willowherb and Thistleforming drifts […]

Woah blackberry bamalam

Branches fullvines ladengreen turn to redred turn to blacksour turn to sweetswollen fruitsfoodfor beasts and beings alike. Browse as you gograze as you passbursts in your mouthas you bite downsweetness on the tongue. Pick carefully.Squeeze too tightand squidgemessy mushfinger and thumb stained purple. Pick carefully.Look before popping in.Small beasties can lurk within,protein for the unwary. […]

The passenger seat

When did it happen? When I became the driverwhen it was all down to meas the guideas the carer to othersuntil discardedonce no longer needed. When is it my turn to rest? When can I be taken on a journeyand not have to plannot have to know the routenot have to concentrate? When is it […]

Lying in the rain

Some days the world is too muchthe pain overwhelmingthe fatigue all consuming. Too much still to do. The walls falling inwardwith the weight of the thoughtsloud and intrusivemocking my weakness. I’m lostalonefeelings flatlinedmatching my husk of a body. And all I can dois lay down in the raindroplets hitting my faceto wash the tears away.

The Find

The findthe bargainthe cap. Hiddenat the back of the shelf. Charity shop laden with goodiesif you take the timeto browse and exploreto rummage and peepin the nooks and crannies. A whole new hatfitting wellfor peanuts of peanutsonly one pound fifty. Not enoughfor this chapeaux to be worn at an anglejaunty to the eye So of […]

Velcro Vert

Amazing structurenatures architecture at its bestunassumingyet fringed with the tiniest hooksthat grab and holdto the unwary passing throughsleeves and legs coveredor fur if of the furry persuasion. All plannedand createdto spread the plants worldso young can growunencumbered by the parent. No need to spread on the windor explode at the touchor wait to be eatenand […]

Creeping Thistle

A national emblem?A weed?A purple gem above the greenA source of foodA place to hide for the tiny. The Thistlethis version Creepingsmells so sweetof honey and promiseof nectarand life sustaining energywaving in the breezein sync with it’s brethren. Small globesburst forth from their toplike an anemonefeeding in the ocean’s currentsall protected from the ground upby […]

Leaden lids

Sight SightlessSight Sightless Eyes heavyLids leaden Fatigue like weightsclinging to eyelashesweighing downdragging my eyes closed. Head drooping then jerking upfighting the collapseand the darknessthat will inevitably come.

Silent Salve

In a world of noiseboth inside and outthe silence of solitudeis a salve for the soulto soothe and renew.

Meadow cells

I lay stillin the depth of the meadowsurrounded by the scents of the earthand the sounds of a thousand tiny soulsuntil the serenityseeped into my very cellsand I became onewith the energy of nature.

Shush!

Shush! Be silentand listen. Not just hearTruly listenNot to respondbut to understand. Stop the outputCease the talk Overuse of your own voicecan make you deaf for there’s nothing to hearbut your own words. So shush! Listen!

The leaf on the stone

A leaf On flag stone A simple thing Yet how did it get here? Trees surround me Yet not the right type Cherries abound Apple and Pear Alder and Willow But no Sycamore. A puzzle to ponder How did you reach here? Where are you from? Where is your treeA Where you grew And fell […]

Silent Sty

Silent of swineyet what stories could you tell?How many lives have you seen bornand grown within your walls?How many families have you sustained?Solid of stone, walls and trough.A roof of slatesto keep out the Lakeland rain.Better built than any house todaybuilt to lastto provide shelterand ultimatelysustenance to the caretakers of old. Maybe if I sit […]

The Scent of Renewal

BakedDriedHotAlmost sizzling. The word of concreteTarmacand stonesuperheatedscorched by the sun. Too hotfor bare feetof human or dog. Thenwhen it seems almost impossiblewhen it seems so long since last timeit finally rains. Large fat dropletspatting with an almost sizzle of soundand thenif you stop to noticeif your nose is switched onor you lower your face to […]

The silence of an old mill

The grinding of stone upon stonegrain ground with gratitudeflour, powder, dust in the airwood creakingwheels turningwater churninghatchways opening and closingsome silentlysome slammingas sacks move up and downempty then full.Voices and shoutslost amongst the tumultbodies bending and heavingspreading grease on axleshefting bounty on shouldersbent beneath the weight. Now silentbut for the running of waterand chirrups of […]

Mackerel sky

Pale scales shimmerwithin the blue oceana constant shoalswimming across the azureas I gaze upat the mackerel skyand breath inthe break of dawn.

Listening

Listening hearing. Hearing listening. AttentionWatchingAnalysingQuestioningSilencePausingRepeatingSummarisingParaphrasing All skills told to be essentialtrained on workshopspresented at talks. Yet still misunderstood “I hear you”can mean anythingor nothing.You heardbut did you listen?You listenedbut did you hear? Hearing is listeningto what is said.Listening is hearing what isn’t said.