Strident in centre field,Startled a long run it makes Limbs long and leanAcross the evening field it sprints, A back-lit golden dart;Partially shielded above the The boundary ditchTo watch and listen,Then in another direction, Over splash of greenApollo’s arrow spears the sun.
Author Archives: ruthpartridge
To Look Up
Under the mighty thundercloud warm air is drawn Yet the wind whips simultaneously From the rising wall of slate Steep and anviled, ominous is the beast And precise as the shutter closed,A grinding rumble from the depths of the grey was soundedLike a giant awakening;And so drawn am I toBeauty seen in the striking skies;ShieldingContinue reading “To Look Up”
Drawn to a Black and White World
Only a thin blue lineA hint of haze As fog puckers its surface; Smokescreen of view,Visceral changes manifest asBlurred shapes deep within a Cloud- born haze form Lines without ends, Fields, their boundaries lost inVanishing spectral light-Of A chain of promises broken; Drawn in are we or out Into a black and white world?
Gardening through Climate Change
So will I show you the Spring: With the warmth of the sunCalendar predictionFast growth of green shoots Spearing the soilArrow flight to the light.So will I show you:Protected with wool Cloched and tressed upPlantedTo beat onslaught-A gruelling antidote to A month of droughtMonsoon in proportion; Leaching ofMulched beds To the bottom of the hillAContinue reading “Gardening through Climate Change”
On the Western Sky
Cloak of cloudMorphs into a storm dementorCauliflowered top and rising fast Thunderously blackened Drawn battle of the godsOminously stirredFringed edges sweep the skylineSwallowing the viewIn its furyInto a black and white world.
Hare 2
Bold in the lane Totally still A statuesque form Aligned to a bronzeCast by the evening sunExhibit 2Then… Alerted It’s ears twist and are raised Like a muntjac from behind So raised are the hind legsGear changed and foot down Shower gravel as they springBurning rubber on a sixpence Through the gateway and gone.
Stormy Seas
The sea churns With spun sugar-whipped foaming energy Fixing salt spray on the lips;The gull on the fingers of the windIs held in suspensionAs the waves roll and retreatLike the Tuppenny slot machine of the arcade,Relentlessly mechanical in motion: in and outDrawing the sand from the bed of the sea In a serge of reddishContinue reading “Stormy Seas”
Guinea Fowl
They arrived last evening, Nonchalantly walking along the verge, Bobbing red heads held highOwning the road,So passers by stopped and asked if they were ours-A pair with Quirky gait And funny call (not the passers by)Of ‘Chi Chi Chi,’And ‘Come back here;’ I’ve never cared to look at guinea fowl before- They made me smile,MoreContinue reading “Guinea Fowl”
Rain 2
Again the wind roars The rain lashes Across in straight lines The torment comes In the grey light of dawnA driven energy A pounding invasion Quietened are the birdsTaking refuge in the hedgeTheir songReplaced by the strengthened gustsGone is the gentleness of eveningThe rain driving in an angled veilIntensifies in rhythm of a snare drumContinue reading “Rain 2”
Gentle Rain
Steady and deliberate drops fall Patterning the surface of the soilIn stippled patternReleasing The intoxicating sweet smell of fungal spores Evocative of rare still nights The air hangs The sound mesmerisingIntensifyingThe garden in secrecy awaitsRefreshmentWithout tormentOf wind and storm. Tonight the soil will be replenishedThe plants nourishedNurtured with care.
Ruth Partridge 