Praise the Rain

Praise the Rain Praise the rain; the seagull diveThe curl of plant, the raven talk—Praise the hurt, the house slackThe … More

The most popular lifesaving poems

Earlier this year my Lifesaving Poems blog enjoyed something of a milestone. Not as momentous as Jimmy Anderson taking his … More

The Fear of Poetry In this moment when we facehorizons and conflicts widerthan ever before, we want our resources,the ways … More

Twilight Three minutes ago it was almost dark.Now all the darkness is in theleaves (there are no morelow garage roofs, … More

Courage It is in the small things we see it.The child’s first step,as awesome as an earthquake.The first time … More

Young Poets’ Stories project update: Today we add a reading resources for young poets page to the Young Poets’ Stories website. … More

Struggling I haven’t had time to stand and fart recently,and you’re wanting me to work on a relationship? That silence … More

The Schoolchildren Like leaves startled by a gust of windthey peel away from the tight-knit group,one child, two, another, more,taking … More

Simply Lit Often toward evening,after another day, afteranother year of days,in the half dark on the way homeI stop … More

Dying Nothing to be said about it, and everything –The change of changes, closer or further away:The Golden Retriever … More

Here are some places that I have been visiting recently and derived much comfort from. I hope you enjoy them … More

Calling all Winning & Highly Commended Foyle Young Poets 2012 – 2019 If you are a young writer who … More

The washing never gets done.The furnace never gets heated.Books never get read.Life is never completed.Life is like a ball … More

Save Us From Save us from night,from bleak open highwayswithout end, and the fluorescentoases of gas stations,from the gunning of … More

I have always believed that poems come into your life when you need them most. (That was … More

Practice To weep unbidden, to wakeat night in order to weep, to waitfor the whisker on the face of the … More

Any Common Desolation can be enough to make you look upat the yellowed leaves of the apple tree, the fewthat … More

Another Loss to Stop For Against such cold and mercurial mornings,watch the wind whirl one leafacross the landscape,then, … More