Sometimes, when it seems as if the sky
and earth,
And past
and future,
are colliding,
with no horizon
to keep them apart,
I like to close my eyes,
and think of Now.

Yesterday once made up
                                         the Now,
with colours so vivid and explosive,
sounds so vibrant and patterned,
feelings so tangible,
so real,
it seemed as if you would never be able to forget them.
But Now has turned them into
                                                                   echoes,
and Now has made the colours bleed out
into sepia browns and soft greys,
so that the image,
the memory,
is clear –
but the character, the youth, the feeling,
is disappeared.
  

Yet this is hope –
For today will soon be yesterday,
And tomorrow will always lie awake,
So when it feels like today is just another today,
So why worth the pain,
Grasp the morning with your two palms,
And paint yellows and fiery oranges,
And grasp the evening,
And paint purples and dusky pinks,
So that today is not just another today,
But a new today, a new Now, a new day.
              
          And if it feels as if today will never
end,
Just remember,
that when gravity pulls you down,
and it seems light cannot get through –
it is Time that tethers us all,
like golden trees are tethered to the earth,
and silvery fish are tethered to the tide
and time will move on,
and heal and change and blend and be
the light you now see - or just
                                                     a distant
memory.

For memory is a strange thing,
Like pebbles shaped by water,
It fluctuates and alters with the forces of the sea,
Forming the bedrock of the ocean, yet everchanging
And what was once the present,
is now the past,
So that all you really have to hold on to,
To tether yourself when the current seems too strong,
To rely on when the future may not be a given,
Is your present, your today, and
our Now.

the cities
redraw their borders and
fragment their spaces
into small cubes:
apartments,
studios,
and duplex houses.
and you,
with a thousand windows open
in windows,
your emoji hands,
and your microphone muted.

I wonder
What it is like
To be still.

It must be lovely
Not always shifting in your skin
And mind as well.

Is it even possible
To have that in this time?
Who can tell?

I don't know
But I hope one day
I will - you know, be still...

Get that window open!
Go on, do it!

Feel the fat rotation of the planet
throwing a little spring our way
to poke our amygdala
and rattle our dormancy

and sure, we know at the back of minds
a bare faced bait and switch is in play
which means our twitching fingers
will seek to put the big coats in the loft
only with dismay to find the grey frost
return to bite our ***** mid-March

but we can dream and show some ankle
can’t we?

We hold out for this spring
harder than a man who’s lost nine digits
to frostbite
so we can point to where it hurts,
be heard,
aware that we’re linked,
a swarm of warmer hands
that need to hold, to cling, to brace
against this lingering, malingering pain

We’re ready to emerge,
but only together
and while inclement, duplicitous weather
still rages
we’re better, sadly,
caved

Cold white numerals
from the Teutonic-honest dash:
9.5°C

Not so cold, I guess
but not the weather to press the button
for the windows to drop

I do while accelerating
too fast for the road,
the fresh air has volume
that angry-loves my tired,
house-cat skin

The wub-wub-wub pulse in my ears
has a cause I control
for once
as the next curve beckons

The world put to a halt,
In lockdown
Creating this cocoon of ours.

Morning kisses
Conversations on toast
Another coffee for this sleepyhead,

It is in those seconds you do not notice
That it hits me the most.

Who will we be
When this page goes down in history?

Dressing sharp for a burger
Dancing to silence,
I will remember

Feelings on the tip of my tongue
Slowly unlocking  -

Truth lights up the dark

I fell in love
During lockdown.

On one of my daily walks
I spotted a little daffodil – perfect and yellow.
I didn’t realize that the season had changed.
Been so busy just trying to survive,
I didn’t notice that it was Spring.

Looking at that little daffodil,
My thoughts went to you - as they do.
And made me feel a little less alone.
Sometimes it is the smallest of things,
That keeps you going, keeps you alive.

As sure as the daffodils are to bloom.
I am sure I will see you again soon.
Until I can safely say hello,
I’ll keep you in my thoughts.
Every time I see some yellow.