An assorted mix of early poems, written 1995 to 2004 by the author. These are unthemed poems, variously published individually, but not as a collection.
ANDREW
The glare of the light
The long-drawn night
The waiting, inducing
A baby producing
Wrapped up in a blanket of death.
A womb ready to bear
Arms ready to care
The knitting, relating
A Nursery waiting
Wrapped gently for the grave.
The ring of the phone
The drive home alone
Flowers joyfully proclaiming
Card messages stating
Wrapped around in grief.
A baby so cold
So fleetingly to hold
Photos, remembering
Loving yet leaving
Wrapped only in the earth.
Child with a name
With a terrible fame
Your parents time-marking
Enduring night darkening
As you are wrapped lovingly in pure light.
WRAP THE BABY WELL
A blanket for the baby
To wrap him from the cold
A blanket for the baby
So I have been told.
A blanket for the baby
To make him feel secure
A blanket for the baby
My swaddling he’ll endure.
A blanket for the baby
Because it’s cold outside
A blanket for the baby
Because it’s even tide.
A blanket for the baby
So he can kick and play
A blanket for the baby
Because it is another day.
A blanket for the baby
To keep him warm and snug
A blanket for the baby
As warm as Mummy’s hug.
A blanket for this baby
But he cannot be found
One blanket for this baby
Born only for the ground.
