Wednesday, 28 March 2018

DISSOLUTION (Roche Abbey, 1538) - a poem




Disbelieving
On hands and knees,
I crawl, shielding
The hum-bright hive,
Tilted honey spilling unspoiled
Bees trail a curling Kyrie
Up between linden’s fingers

Disbelieving that they would
Until they came
A storm of the king’s sending,
No pilgrimage of grace
Tripping me out of my habit

La belle Roche,
Melts into pewter, stone, timber, lead
What will become of me?
I lick my fingers
As the sword descends,
Taste only honey, blood,
Thyme from the shadows of the kitchen-garden.

Refectorium
Buzz and banter
Swims into silent
No stone unturned
Into rectangles of hollow
Mapped matins and misericord
Long since sung.


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