Bats

Only the bat is nebular
Their streaming shadows play the remaking of a light show; 
Serotine ,
Pippestrelle or Horseshoe
Forms identified by ear or fur
Personified in mystery in
Soft bodied perpetual motion 
With a fleeting glimpse
A powdered spectre;
Flight 
At dawn or dusk.
Yet through the night
The shadows play against the glass
In liminal motion
Retreating and oscillating
Back and forth
A mesmerising display
If I should stay awake to see.


We found her under our bed!

We have always had bats in the roof. Last year they moved around to just above our window , most probably a nursery roost .They are here again this July . There are more than ten of them and are beautiful to watch as they fly before nightfall.

One came in the other night through the window.

70 years

Just what has happened through 70 years-
Just what has changed?
Yet what stands out clear
Shown at the party in the Mall 
 
The pictures on a house 
The pictures of a life 
For one who has given much 
For one who leads with love
Our Queen through 70 years 
Constant through our fears
Consistency in action 
A life with driven purpose
A life of faith with service

We celebrate in style
In a way our country can  
A nation drawn together 
A moment of rejoicing
In poignant recognition 
Carnival and whooping
National pride and affection
Flags and decoration
For seventy glorious years.

Observations in the Woodland Garden

My hands deep in the earth-
Stained and worn
Where air is heavy and intense  from spores released with rain;
I watch fine droplets streaming down new leaves 
Arched over with weight
As fronds of ferns
With Prehistoric curl
Hang low
In communion with Dog-toothed violet;
Where faded  primroses nod
To bluebells near purple in their 
Intoxicating intensity;
The old fork is propped
Ready to lift the clods of soil
In time- worn fashion
In this ancient part of the garden.

Observations on a Postcard

Beautiful afternoon for watching the beach and eating shellfish alfresco at the Winking Prawn .

North Sands Salcombe South Devon 
A postcard view within a snapshot 
But sit awhile and observe the flow
Towards the shoreline 
Down and up
Except
Eyes  skyward, a whippet follows a disc 
In predictable line of anticipated retrieval across the wet sand
Breaking the mirrored surface
Avoiding the flow 
Cloud patterns sweep the shore 
In laminar flow
As the water pools like a spill on the ground 
And carefree  children trace their 
Route trailing bucket and spade
In grooves made by sand worms
To the water’s seamless edge   
A liminal zone with little distinction
Before the paddle border takes the stage 
And the whir of the speedboats in the bay.