It was three weeks before the end of the world:even the leaves were making for the exit and that Mennonite magic hovered among the hostas I knew you’d come:the coyotes were callingand the stones looked fragile Pain is temporary, they say – until…
Read: I knew you’d come
Corey Ford, an American writer and humourist, is also described as an outdoorsman. So it’s a little surprising that the only quotation of his I know is this: “I’d go away if it wasn’t so far.” It is, however, a…
I scan the crowdthe heat of its passing,the trigonometry of its structureand the sense of destiny in its eyes Bits of it break awayand speak to meHello, mate!Everything OK?Lovely day Somewhere deep in thereare slices of angerfingers of fearbut I…
Read: The crowd
One of the best pieces of advice given to me early in my “career” was to start what my editor at the time called a commonplace book. This was just a place to store any quotations that struck me as…
The winding roadfrom Christmas Eve to New Year’s Dayis hard to follow – unnecessary humps, diversions, hold-ups, unexpected lights –and intersections all awry That normal weekly neatness cast asideand signposts scribbled overthen abandoned: distractions everywhereand black holes, potholes too We lose…
Read: Here we go again
Magnus Carlsen, the best chess player in the world, turned up for a tournament in New York recently wearing jeans. Smart jeans (he’s a smart player), but jeans nevertheless. This offended the organisers, who had a dress code. Carlsen offered…