Surge
The day approaches from round the corner,
narcissus insinuate themselves into the soil,
a jay rises high, too pink and beautiful to be contained.
Beginning of buds sing at the top of the flame bush
zinging like lemon zest on a tired tongue.
It’s time to begin again.
To take a tray and lay it with teacups,
to draw a margin with a ruler,
to walk the pavements till they seep
with maple syrup,
to spread a tartan blanket over tufts of grass
and feel stones press in your back,
to build a shed with paperbacks,
to sift flour through a cheese grater,
to marvel at the green parrot hanging
upside down on a feeder full of majesty.
Don’t be fooled by the cold bustle in the trees,
there is the early curl of an arum lily.
Soon the sky will spill with petals,
the jet black eyes of a dormouse
will reflect the surge that has just begun.
Chrissie Gittins‘ collections are Sharp Hills (IDP), I’ll Dress One Night as You (Salt) and Armature (Arc). She appeared with her fifth children’s poetry collection on BBC Countryfile. Her second short story collection was shortlisted for the Saboteur Awards. Her work has featured on BBCR4, the Poetry Archive and she is a Hawthornden Fellow.