Nancy leeved in a sma warldin a sma fermnae faur frae a sma toon.She hud sma ettlins.Clivver is she wis, there wis naethinshe wintit mairthin tae wirk the ferm. It wis a sair trauchlemulkin coos, thinnin neeps,howdiein caufs, begowkin the todthit keepit is ill ee on hir chookies.The sonsiest hingmy in Nancy’s sma warldwis er […]
on reading Arundhati Roy’s essay, ‘The Pandemic is a Portal’ It cam sae suddent, the lockdoon – guns jabbin oor backs, aawhaur baured,naewhaur tae bide.We were in the swatshoap,ma bairns an me, at the machines,stitchin zips, three hunner atween us an oor,pirn-threid castin stourthrou a gash o licht blearin ma veesion;sae blin I wis, an […]
I’m no havin children, A’m gonnae hae weans; /
an ye’ll can ask whit A cry them, no what are their names; /
The canallie thringt an jostled at the seiven lassies paraudin past een fixed oan the varsity doors aheid, laith tae allou the flyre an stanes tae haud thaim back The examine thay beet tae tend an aa ither leafu pairts o thair Auld Reekie coorse willnae coont tae gie thaim kennin o thair moyen as […]
Ah wunner if the Romans / wha cam up wi sewage systems / wir derogatit, torn doon / an met wi sic resistance /
No likely / since thay wander aff thaimsels / somewhaur in the washin process / ne’er tae be seen again /
E’en Burns wis leuked oan as ae coothie an ootlin curiosity / fae days o yore /
Re-examinin lives / Numbin fae reality
afore the urge tae stap up / arrives in a day or sae
Hoodit angels flaffin by like craws o licht, pear trees reishin, the waff o yalla roses, the soun o greitin i the nicht, the dirl o a lassie’s finger on skin, the saft taste o kisses i the simmer dim. An auld dream – a dream o the thing at cuts an dives, beats abune […]
Frae watter an stane an sun’s fire /
We cam, a crawl o birselt things
For monie soundin years, yir voice rang abune the wuids, / Owre the corn o Kilmeny an the siller Tay:
ye tuik the simmer’s lang white road /
whaur lichtsome hills is daft wi sang
