(10)
Ambling down the lane
to give the beach a sniff;
hi's to five, and I love them all –
the fella chatting to his dog, his dog,
the others huddled in, in conversation –
the usual rock, dependable
as the confluence of two tides
curling all the way around it,
meeting at the other side,
And from the hill, a tractor silhouette,
the still blue air swishing down its rumble,
a bliss of warmth,
no spray today, exploding from the rock,
just a choking splutter: he said what?
You can’t be serious! The voices,
reaching so much further than I'm used to,
make me want to rush back home to you,
even though you’re locked behind a door,
and we eat in different rooms, smiling
into screens, pixel-light.
Crisis clarifies emotions and priorities,
you said. You mean, you know,
the world to me. And that means
so much more, now the world's
gone blue.
