An open letter to Trump and Brexit voters
Dear fellow inhabitants of the world, 2016 has been a year where many expectations and assumptions have fallen by the wayside, for a whole variety of reasons. It has also… Continue Reading
Women, men, writers, bodies, and metamorphosis
Dear Ren, I don’t even know where to start. When I worked as a teacher in Germany in in 1980/81, Anna (Oscar’s godmother) and I wrote each other letters that… Continue Reading
Space
Last night you said good-bye to me for the last time,Closed the airtight door behind you,And flew out into deep spaceBecause that’s where you said you wanted to beWithout ever… Continue Reading
Cats and dogs and middle-age and music and parenthood
Dear Ren, As always, I’m listening to some new music when writing, because, contrary to many other writers I know, I need sound to put my words together. It’s so… Continue Reading
Calais
This is the place.This was part of England once.English kings fought here,And English soldiers died here,To conquer a country that was never theirs. This is the place.Camps of refugees have… Continue Reading
Fairytales
When I was young, I always had this visionOf me, in my old age, sitting in a cottage garden,At a rickety wooden table, wife and children by my side,And dogs… Continue Reading
4D
I thought second time round would be easier. I was wrong. It’s like having a part of me ripped away With nothing to replace it. It’s only temporary, of… Continue Reading
I Reject
I reject that autumn starts on the first of September. I reject that organised religion is faith. I reject that faith engenders violence. I reject that one faith is greater… Continue Reading
Politics, mandates, and real life
It’s been a while. In real life, anyway. In politics, not so. We’re due to have a new Prime Minister on 13th July, some time in the evening, a Prime… Continue Reading
We Are The World
They say a week is a long time in politics. One minute is a long time in world economics. Within a minute of the result of the EU referendum… Continue Reading