Continuing with our 'incidental' series of poems written by members of our monthly digital storytelling group, here's the first of some lockdown verse by Sandra Falconer! Splendid Isolation When the command finally came it was hardly unexpected. Indeed, our self incarceration was anxiously desired As he found, at last, the means to sound authoritative, We … Continue reading Splendid Isolation 1 by Sandra Falconer
Month: April 2020
Outrageous Light by Helen Anderson
"Helen Anderson’s poem ‘Outrageous Light’ is a stark reminder that nothing can really take away the utter devastation of losing someone we love. ‘Gone is Gone’ holds such heartbreaking finality, is an unarguable statement with a dark, epitaph-like feel. The last stanza offers a hollow and terrible contrast - one child is gone from this … Continue reading Outrageous Light by Helen Anderson
Messages of hope from Ally O’Neill
Hello! In addition to our Friday poems selected by Jane Burn, we're delighted to bring you a few poems and messages from the participants of our monthly digital storytelling workshops. Ally O'Neill is a mum of two teenagers, born and raised in Middlesbrough. She says I started off writing songs after learning the guitar at … Continue reading Messages of hope from Ally O’Neill
Honour by Finola Scott
"Finola Scott’s poem ‘Honour’ brings us the shock of a younger person’s mortality. I feel very strongly the sense of the loss of someone else’s son through the conversation with her own child. Death touches every one of us and in many ways, we never expect it in those younger than us. The poem suggests … Continue reading Honour by Finola Scott
Mercy by E.A. Charlton
"E A Charlton’s poem has hints of the biblical within its small, simple, psalm-like form. ‘Spare the rabbit heart inside/That brittle chest of mine’ carried a lot of emotion within it for me, perfectly summed up the idea of fast-beating fear. The poem ends on a note of quiet sadness that I found very affecting." … Continue reading Mercy by E.A. Charlton
Into The Sea by Dominic Berry
"Dominic Berry’s poem is a baptism for our modern age. The poem is snatched and breathless with a sense of the sea’s danger in phrases like ‘slash/sharp waves.’ The poet conjures an atmosphere of breathlessness and screams. He is fighting against the very elements for his freedom. The sea pulls him inexorably." - Jane Burn, … Continue reading Into The Sea by Dominic Berry
Celebrating Change 