Poppy pup

(c) A McN

Botanical Gardens, Belfast

Conjunction

Sawing wood in the dark,
my arm swings to a tribal rhythm.
The rasp of the blade is a hypnotic chant and
the headtorch brushes shadows back and forth as
I sway to the ebb and flow of force.

Incense of sap and sawdust rises
to mingle with the pillars of my breath.

Behind me, the moon is a thin, wry smile.
Two planets shine like silver dimples
on her cheeks.

(c) A McN

May Morning

Today started
with the soft snowfall of willow-down
drifting from the riverside trees
in the warm, bright morning air.

Today ended
sitting in the garden in the dark
watching the stars appear,
seeing the moon-milk on the honeysuckle leaves
and wishing someone would share it with me.

Between the start and the end
I have struggled,
looking for things to keep me active,
things to keep my mind from turning inward to the
hint of shadow that,
in some lights,
looks to be a gaping hole.

(c) A McN

Strange how, even surrounded by beauty and aware of blessing, the shadows can cast an unseasonable chill over the inner landscapes of the mind.