Sunday 5 June 2011

Poems for Tavistock

Here are four poems that I wrote in 2008 for a competition organised by a writers' group in Tavistock in association with St Eustachius' church there. The brief was for 4-line poems on the theme of love, and all entries appeared in the competition anthology Poetry in the pews. It wasn't therefore a very selective anthology, but this was publication enough, according to my rule, to let me blog the poems now.

None of the poems requires explanation, but if Tavistock gets a link then I reckon Edington, named in the first poem, also deserves one. And the musical work named in that first poem gets tags.


BETWEEN EDINGTON AND BRATTON

It's a church music festival, so not
the place they'd sing 'Sure on this shining night'.
But we walked there, late summer night, in health,
and felt the starlit landscape to the north.


A CYCLE

Our first bike tour was first for firstness, yes,
the new itself still new, new day new place.
Today, newness is less, firstness is full.
Yet the wheels no less strengthen in their pull.


ONE TYPE OF LOVE

An arm round her shoulders
and letting her cry.
Ah, that's not what I meant
by a holding reply.


SELF-LOVE

I'M SPECIAL vexes, without meaning to,
the special rage of I'M AS GOOD AS YOU.
-- Why don't you try I'M OK YOU'RE OK?
-- Yes, but it never seems to stick that way.

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