poem

5 Wednesday

August 8, 2021 By Ellen Leave a Comment

Things there are no words for The exact exasperation of a fly buzz-by again. Jump-scare daylight after a matinee. The beat-beat calm before bad news bites. And when you see your son as a reasonable human being… and quite like him. Someone put sugar in the tea and didn’t tell you, or salt. Wondering […]

3 Monday

August 3, 2021 By Ellen 1 Comment

Squeeze All of a sudden there’s a squeeze around the heart. Sharp. A wincing intake. In a photo, it’s not the summery smiles with ice cream ghosts that nettles, but the unspooling since. I feel it in a sugar crunch, sharp with lemon, in the opening of a Top 40 climber. In […]

2 Sunday

August 3, 2021 By Ellen 1 Comment

Downpour What I love about rain is its sheer bloody toldyousoness its smell, of course the plash, pitter and plop its ’bow a smug waterproof coat strangers talking kaboom, flash thunder storm dry firesides wellington boots with fleecy linings its stopped play lushy swishy grass clouds smearing the overthere hills a single bulging orb […]

1 Saturday

August 3, 2021 By Ellen Leave a Comment

You are an angry woman Of course, I am. I’m bloody furious. Because my babies ate my time my choices were ridiculous and then I couldn’t go back. Because equality is a big fat sneaky lie and opportunity doesn’t knock it shows its hairy arse through the window then flees. Because while I was […]

Poem: I come from …

August 2, 2021 By Ellen Leave a Comment

I come from the north, From grey harling, drizzled crags and scree. Dandelion and burdock. Engage low gear now. Bacon for breakfast. Breaking in your boots. Passing places and bloody tourists. The library’s parquet gleam. Peewits and feral cats. Toasted arse against the Aga. Wellies and broken veins. Creosote on the fence. Shirt […]