New Beginnings
We watched a man chase rainbows off the estate
a starched pattern circled his greased back hair
sipping a boiler maker with a brandy chaser,
a glass of Cherry B for the wife.
We were immortals in the garden of cement
packed bullet shells inside our coats –
ran from darts of hay-fever that chased us over crow stalking quarries.
Stumbled through chalk white dog-white
arriving home before our nighty clout,
we never questioned the ways things were
how the screams every Friday night next door got louder
Grew into an age when the world was going to end
the president was an actor the prime minister a woman,
it seemed that anything was possible for the Children of Thatcher.
Matt Duggan is a Bristol born poet his poems have appeared in many journals. In 2015 he won the Erbacce Prize for Poetry with his first full collection Dystopia 38.10 (erbacce-press) and in 2016 won the Into the Void Poetry Prize, with his poem ‘Elegy for Magdalene’. He was made a core – member at erbacce-press in 2017 and helps the press with their annual poetry competition plus contributing to their journal, Matt also has two new chapbooks available ‘One Million Tiny Cuts’ (Clare Song Birds Publishing House) and due out in April 2018 ‘A Season in Another World’ (Thirty West Publishing House).