Granddaughters

We shift our bodies

Under the moon

The sky is ripening with stars

Busy as a river 

Full of silver fish 

Alice has a fever

Too many thoughts

And dreams 

Her cheeks are red

But her eyes still sparkle

Starlit on the eve of December

We sail away on our boat

Well really it is our bed

And a mixture of potions

Fluid as a bird

On the wing 

It is funny to think

We are somebody's granddaughters 

She whispers 

It is funny to think 

We belong to anyone

That is the way of the world 

I suppose 

I wipe her brow

Ssh Little Cricket 

All that matters is you and me.

Dear Stranger

Dear stranger

You were never 

A mother to me

You did not love me

Unconditionally

With an open heart

You did not nurture me

Or show me care

You did not hold me

When I fell

You did not see my hurt

You chose not to hear 

My screams

You did not kiss

My bruises

You did not

Protect me from harm

You did not praise 

My successes

You laughed at my losses 

I needed you

But you were not there

But always

Always

I have loved you 

Needed you

Forgiven you

Dear mother

You are a stranger to me

And I am a stranger to you.

Invocation

The waitress brings us

Tea and cake

We have been on an adventure

And are hungry and tired

Craving our bed 

And sugary sleep

The waitress doesn't have a name

Not like Hatter

She must in real life

We whisper 

When she has left our table 

Today like a cat chasing a mouse

We ran into the field

And on to the forest

We could feel the power

Of the trees 

For a moment it left us in a fluster

But we spied our deer

And learnt to be still again 

We sat 

Took a rest

Like sitting on nature's porch 

We summoned up

An invocation

Please keep us safe

That we have made it

To the end of another day

Seems magical

We finish up 

Our tea and cake

Slowly walk back to the room

At least we left

If only for a moment.

Paths

We hold the leaf 

In our hand

It is cold and the veins

Have turned orange

Our fingers tremble

But at least the path ahead

Of us is full of lights

We would choose to be high

Up in the canopy

Rather than in the dark of the 

Train tracks

That gave me goose bumps

She whispers

Sometimes it feels like 

We are walking on a tight rope

Higher than 

The Eiffel Tower

When we dream

It is of a distant house

Hidden in the bullrushes 

There is a wooden bridge 

The splinters cut our feet

The silent hunter

The tawny owl 

Flies in the moonlit sky

Hunting out his prey 

Quite magical 

She declares

As magical as the lunar eclipse

And walking on the road to nowhere 

There are so many paths

She says

It is a pity

That you only choose one.

Ordinary

I have been called many names

But by far the worst

Was average

You are just an ordinary person

The jealous woman said

Alice contemplates my face

You are far from ordinary

She says 

If nothing else

You made your body special 

Her delicate fingers

Run over my scars

Face to toes

And your mind has always been different

You think in a different way

Not good 

Or bad

Just your way

Thank you Little Cricket

I kiss her finger tips

Another thank you 

One for touching me

In the body 

I am 

Quite how you can pluck

A story from thin air

Makes me giggle

It is not as if you go on any adventures

Any more

I chew my lip

Getting past the front door

Feels like an expedition 

I am quite happy 

Lying here with you 

I say

And we look at each other

With mutual love and wonder

Two special young women

Half lost 

Half found

Always together in spirit.

Navajo Mountain

We are two strangers

Breathing our story

On top of the Navajo mountain

The sage brushes our feet

We live and we remember

Alice smiles

That is why you are addicted

To the potion

You do not really want to live

You would rather live in your head

Wouldn't we all 

I reply

Perhaps we walked

To the 

Mountain top

For a blessing

Some ancient gift

Like bread

To keep us moving 

We walked to be be found

She whispers

She is always right

The movement soothes us

Much better than lying still

Although that is all

We can manage 

And so we rest for a while

On top of the Navajo mountain

Breathe in its wisdom 

Our truth

And exhale our hopes

High up into the sky, 

Edge of a Dream

We walk high up on the walls

The burnt out town behind us

Tiger comes too

For protection

It was only a moment 

Before that we were

Wrapping flowers 

Around our eyes

Their colours shimmering

Under the light of

The morning moon

She reaches out a tiny hand

To a shadow hand

Imprinted on the walls

We have to keep moving

I say

As gently as I can

There is an open door in a field

We go through

Tiger has taken us as far as he can

Now we travel alone 

Metal birds 

Above us

Long dresses holding 

Us down

How very silly says Alice

I wish I was a boy

No cares

Just eating red roses 

But girls get to ride horses

I say

One appears 

As if by magic

And we gallop along

Emerging from

The edge of a dream. 

Talking to Ourselves

Remember when you lost your mind

And you thought everything 

Was magic

She asks

I remember it fondly

I reply

It was the best time 

Of my life

Seeing signs

Colour

Him

The magician 

Now he was tricky

We giggle

I liked the fire

Sitting on the edge of the bridge

I liked the invincibility 

It is a pity

It was fleeting

She says

Twenty-eight days

Of dancing and singing

I believe in madness 

You are your true self

I think this

She nods in agreement

We do not always have

To speak out loud 

Now things are the same every day

She moans

You are addicted to the potion

I cannot leave you

Just in case

Well

You know

I reach for her hand

Stroke her hair

Her brow is feverish

Too much time thinking

And talking 

I whisper

And lay down

To sleep

Remembering how magic can be, 

Deer

We say our morning

Prayers

The mist is rising 

The clouds are parting 

Please let us see

The deer's breath of every colour

Like a fetish

We want to run through the shadows

Let the spruce tickle our feet

The juniper berries

Fall into our hair

When we touch them the juice

Will turn our fingers 

To indigo 

That will be magic 

As the day passes

The pollen will make

Our noses twitch

Just like the deer 

She says

If the deer is wise

It will stay hidden 

I reply

If only our bodies were nimble

Like his

Not withered and tired

Like ours

At least we have a wish

To see the deer's breath of every colour. 

Keys and Pews

Remember when we used

To go to the special place

Smell the old wooden pews

The memories

And the prayers 

Now the door is locked

We lay out a pile of

Old keys

On a wooden table

Wood as worn as the pews

Together we sift 

Through the keys

Maybe one will fit

She squeals

With delight

She always has enjoyed 

Solving puzzles

Outside

A blue tit

Nestles under the statues hand

Like I would like to be protected

But I am no delicate bird

I am a black bird

Flying out of an unwritten book

After a while we give up

Trying to unlock the door

We only have to close our eyes

To go there again

We hold hands and lie down

Shut our eyes

And whisper a tiny

Silent

Prayer. 

Three

Three is not a magic number 

For us

We like things to be even

Uneven makes us

Shake and hurt

There is just you and me

She whispers

We get lonely

But cannot manage many more

The noise

The chaos

People really are unpredictable 

We like to be safe 

In our room

In our bed

In the dark

Life passes us by

This way

Such a waste 

Some might say

It is all we can do

I reply 

In my thoughts

Even makes sense

Three is just odd

Not if you give it a try

She replies

Fall down the hole

Have an adventure

I will show you more. 

April Moon

The face of the moon

Shines over the grass

Soft and fleeting

Like a pandemic

Of pink and silver stars 

We will rest in the 

Damp grass

Tired of trying

Tired of being 

Morning will come

Or so we assume

The waves of hopelessness

Pull us under

I hold her hand tight

Wonder what the first thing 

I saw was

And what will be the last

I know of course

That she will be there

Until the end

My heart

My treasure

My shining April moon.