When I walked for a while in paradise

Inside the subway, I breathed air smelling of weed -

There were wild faces spray painted on the concrete walls -

A mural of magic mushrooms -

A reminder of when I saw jewelled birds -

When I walked for a while in paradise -

Boscombe

May 2026 

Losing ourselves in the gentle story

Reading Mogg The Forgetful Cat with Jake in The Boston Tea Party -

Losing ourselves in the gentle story -

A waitress sashshaying past us with a cappuccino -

The Boston Tea Party 

Salisbury 

May 2026 

Waiting for the moon

Barefoot -

Under the apple tree -

The grass newly wet with rain -

Waiting for the moon -

For invisible people -

To hear them say my name - 

East Stoke

May 2026

inside the Emporium Cafe

Clint Eastwood glowered above me -

A distressed radio played a Dusty Springfield song -

Beyond the labyrinth of antiques, a barefoot man wore a beret -

A sign said more downstairs -

Swanage 

May 2026

The artist

I imagine him -

A haunted boy - 

His wild eye - 

Painting his fervid dreams - 

Swanage 

May 2026

There were still blue bells

There were still blue bells -

Birdsong -

The fragrance of may blossom -

New leaf on old trees -

The yellow shimmer of buttercups in a quiet field -

Sand martins dancing above the river -

Sunlight -

The silence of the sky -

Your name somehow there -

.

East Stoke 

May 2026

The barbers

The barbers with their Assyrian beards -

Their dark eyes - 

Their memories of wounds -

Wareham

2026