For a Journey to the Forest in Time of Snow
Purse, dirk, night-cap, kerchief, shoeing-horn, buget, and shoes;
Spear, nails, hood, halter, sadle-cloth, spurs, hat, withy horse-comb;
Bow, arrow, sword, buckler, horn, brush, gloves, string, and thy bracer…
from ‘Memorial Verses for Travellers’, Sir Anthony Fitzherbert
Three-layer face mask in a plastic zip-up freezer bag;
sapphire-blue sanitiser gel in handy-size bottle;
impregnated wipes, gloves, windscreen rag;
iPhone, latest generation satnav app
with speed limit camera detection gizmo;
flask of fresh black coffee; recycled plastic cup;
for waiting for the lights to change, Leonard Cohen;
for the roundabout, Antonio Vivaldi;
for my forgetful soul: Find my Friend, Find my Phone;
passcode for the parking machine, code for woodpecker chat;
Fairisle bobble hat with earflaps; badger-spotting glasses;
rolled and buckled picnic blanket for a little frozen nap;
miniature whisky for a hilltop glow;
bush-brown jacket, fur-lined boots, pack of Kleenex
for behind-hedge peeing; online guide to cloven tracks in snow.
Alex Josephy lives in London and sometimes in Italy. Her 2020 collection, Naked Since Faversham, was published by Pindrop Press. Her poems have won the McLellan and Battered Moons prizes, and have appeared widely in the UK, Italy and India. www.alexjosephy.net