Revival
I found a frozen lizard on my walk
at the red mud edge of a Devon lane.
Intact and unspotted by crows or rooks,
half hidden in the horse shit round the drain.
I thought the creature might still be alive
just stunned to stupor by the late March chill,
and if I warmed her through she might survive,
so lifted her and walked on up the hill.
As we neared half a mile I felt her move,
faintly, as she responded to the heat
– held softly in my woolly winter glove.
A mile more, her revival now complete,
I found a sunny spot and set her free.
I recall you once did the same for me.
Marc Woodward is a poet and musician living in rural Devon. His writing reflects his surroundings and often has a dark, even macabre, undercurrent. He has been published in a wide range of places including Ink, Sweat & Tears, Prole, Clear Poetry, Message In A Bottle, Avis Magazine and The Poetry Society and The Guardian web sites – as well as in anthologies from Forward, Sentinel, OWF and Ravenshead. His recent chapbook ‘A Fright of Jays’ is available from Maquette Press.
NB: This poem is included in ‘A Fright Of Jays’ published by Maquette 7/15