Famine

What spirit takes you

What spirit am I

What spirit makes you

Act the way you do

In what way do you need me

To be the way I am

With what evils do you feed me

To make me understand

You say that I ignore you

As if you are not there

You say that I don’t listen

And hardly ever care

The spirit is going on vacation

All of your light will be down to you

The spirit is of one nation

Which sure as hell does include you

Feast

The salt lamp

With its non-intrusive glow

Bathes the room

With an aura of love

Forever to be a memory

Of Manchester, with

Its Grayson Perry exhibition

And Canal Street cocktails

Let alone the savoury treacle chips

Holding On

Aeroplane, bird, car

Pencil lead propelled

Blue bird, grey bird

Names withheld

Due to lack of knowledge

Helicopter, pigeon, ambulance

Chimney smoke expelled

Red bird; Robin

Some names return

Due to intransigent memory

Tremulous

Water crashes down

Startling the poet

Whose heart beats heavy

With the expediency of love

Watching On

One robin

Two pigeons

Is it a stand-off

Or dare they square

How much washing

Can one robin do

With how much patience

Will the pigeon coo