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on time
the first ambulance was called this afternoonit was haphazardly parkedacross three Residents Only parking baysno blue light, no alarmengine ticking as it cooledthe paramedics attending someonesomewhere in this new blockbuilt in this ‘village’built for ‘Retirement Living’built for passing throughthere is no shop, no barjust solar powered bungalowssimilarly attiredsmaller than to which they were familiarthe different →
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on neighbours
They moved in last weekShe’s complaining alreadyIt’s too quiet round hereI turned my music upI’ve heard nothing since~n.b. ‘“You can please some of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time.” Abraham Lincoln said that.’ Bob Dylan sang that. CLP 24/11/2024 →
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on Ukraine
Before it’s too latePerhaps everyone needs tostop and take a breakThe ladder will endEach additional step upLeads us all nowhere~ CLP 22/11/2024 →
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on a winter morning
it might be mid-Juneclean sky, orange horizonbut for skeletal oaksopaque car windscreensfrustrate mechanical routinesfrosted bodyworklone cyclist slips pastcocooned commuters’ vehiclessteaming traffic jamtreading out to schooltrio of teenage girls thrilledby icy puddles~n.b. The intricacy of Jack Frost’s work on a neighbour’s car demanded my attention. CLP 21/11/2024 →
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on Ukraine
Cracks in a ceilingStretch along lines of weaknessUntil there is no strength~ CLP 18/11/2024 →
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on time
I realise that I have passedFrom talking of people I knowTo recalling those I knewI draw from a well of storiesDrawing up memories of memoriesFrom a war-time Hampshire farmOf the Canadians in SussexOf majestic sea linersFrom the Black CountryA cricketer who faced TysonFunnelling through generationsA woman who watched Blériot landMy mother’s tales, a song sungAdding →
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on Ukraine
distance no objectinnocent civiliansunder the flight paththe war still drones onbeneath a newsprint mountainabout democracyforeign volunteerstravel to fight the bullylost in confusionRussian troops fallingeach different, each the sameas leaves in autumn~ CLP 10/011/2024 →
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on Ukraine
Moscow’s criminalsReleased if they fight like dogsOn Ukraine’s bloody soilNorth Korean menEmerge but die in numbersBrief lives beyond the wireLike gladiatorsEntertainment for CaesarNew Russian rouletteWar is a cruel gamePlayed out by politiciansWith the lives of others~ CLP 06/11/2024 →