Some of these poems were first published in
New Poetries V (Carcanet 2012),
i chose to listen (Reel Festivals 2011),
New Writing from Scotland (Scottish Book Trust 2009),
Mayfly and
Poetry Scotland. Many thanks to Linda Jackson, Chris Powici, Magi Gibson, Ian Mcpherson, Alan Bisset, Ryan Van Winkle, the Stirling Writers Group, the Arts Trust of Scotland and the Scotttish Book Trust for all their support over the years.
Contents
Even when frost hasnt left the hard ground rutted by the wheels of tractors Even though tail-lights clog the motorway Even though the moon still stands blind and cold in the morning sky Even though the sheets are clean and the covers are warm and the person beside you breathes the rise and fall of somewhere deep Get up Like the dog that hears a sound in the dark Get up
After work my grandfather would wash his hands in the kitchen sink He would use Fairy Liquid as lather, and as a boy Id watch him scrub stains from his skin, clear dirt from his fingernails. Where have these hands been Id wonder, what is out there? Now, after each working each day I stare at my own hands in my own sink. Its a powerful sensation.
When they told him who was beneath the boulder, he didnt say a word just placed his forehead against it, then one hand, then two then set his shoulder to work.
When they told him who was beneath the boulder, he didnt say a word just placed his forehead against it, then one hand, then two then set his shoulder to work.
None of the men had seen someone so desperate, so methodical. The lamps on their helmets brightened his back that shifted and bucked but wouldnt buckle. They watched as his boots dug troughs in the dirt. Whenever he tired thered be silence then three deep breaths and he would go again. We should stop him said one man.
hammers nails hammers nails hammers nails heh Casey did a tell ye a goat a couple a poems published widizthatmean widayyemean dizthatmeanyegetmoneyfurrit eh naw aw right hammers nails hammers nails hammers nails
wear three T-shirts and one hooded top layers are important they can always come off remember your oilskins its always raining somewhere wear a scarf cold air moves down from the neck wear gloves theyre useless when wet but handy if you hit the wrong nail pay attention to the moment the way water drips the way a spider scuttles have a healthy fear of heights when working from a ladder know which way to fall railings and slabs are unforgiving flower beds and fuchsia bushes are better practise your scream if you strike your thumb with the hammer dont squeal roar like a lion when the pain subsides and you look around youll know exactly what I mean acknowledge the moon it was part of the earth once its loneliness can make you feel beautiful lift properly youll need your back to make your money
only children brave enough to return my stare
The stonemason sade its aw in yur heed Yur eyes ur like windeez an yur brains gon naywhere Build yurself a palace The plumber told mi no eh complicate things Ivrythins movin in one direction We jist caerry it fur a while then lit it go A sparky fay Partick sade its impossible ti see bit yull know when yuv found it Itll stope yur hert deed an throw yi right oot yur boots The labourer stood up, its aboot strength, son Wit kin yi caerry, wit kin yi leave behind Roughcast Johnny sade its three parts sand an one part cement.
hammers nails hammers nails hammers nails heh Casey did a tell ye a goat a couple a poems published widizthatmean widayyemean dizthatmeanyegetmoneyfurrit eh naw aw right hammers nails hammers nails hammers nails
wear three T-shirts and one hooded top layers are important they can always come off remember your oilskins its always raining somewhere wear a scarf cold air moves down from the neck wear gloves theyre useless when wet but handy if you hit the wrong nail pay attention to the moment the way water drips the way a spider scuttles have a healthy fear of heights when working from a ladder know which way to fall railings and slabs are unforgiving flower beds and fuchsia bushes are better practise your scream if you strike your thumb with the hammer dont squeal roar like a lion when the pain subsides and you look around youll know exactly what I mean acknowledge the moon it was part of the earth once its loneliness can make you feel beautiful lift properly youll need your back to make your money
only children brave enough to return my stare
The stonemason sade its aw in yur heed Yur eyes ur like windeez an yur brains gon naywhere Build yurself a palace The plumber told mi no eh complicate things Ivrythins movin in one direction We jist caerry it fur a while then lit it go A sparky fay Partick sade its impossible ti see bit yull know when yuv found it Itll stope yur hert deed an throw yi right oot yur boots The labourer stood up, its aboot strength, son Wit kin yi caerry, wit kin yi leave behind Roughcast Johnny sade its three parts sand an one part cement.
Its aw in the mix The joiner stubbed oot eez fag If a mans goat the misyur eh eezsel wit diz it mettur A looked it the gaffer. Work hard, he sade bit that wiz his answer fur ivrythin Slate Knife Mcallum shouted fae the roof Its aboot perspective, son, where eh yi standin Wit eh yi lookin it Then the rain came, heavy, bouncin Pock marks appeared in Johnnys cement Puddles wur jumpin aroond the sparkys feet Half Brick Mcpherson pulled oan eez waterproofs listen tae that, he sade, this is it, a think this is it
Candlelight was kind to her. Her fork seemed weightless, but seldom made the journey upwards I suspect that she had tasted asparagus before Conversations clashed around her and dispersed like circles on the surface of a lake After the Shiraz, I had courage, and I said, You
must have been something when you were younger Quiet, so none could overhear, she touched my arm and replied, We stumble into youth by accident, from somewhere else, and spend the rest of our lives making our way home.
inside the kick and crunch of colour where autumns taken its dagger and opened up a vein so the pavements arent so grey our heartbeats are not so bleak and this kiss holds more than warmth and blood
Plain and smooth and white she tested the tablecloth between thumb and finger New she asked New she replied Then drew the flat of her hand across the arm of her chair to feel the fibres rise against her Always loved this sofa she said Yes she replied Then unconsciously brushed the lattice of veins beneath the scarf around her neck
My window is open this spring evening. There is street noise and summer is only one month away. Two hours ago my sister placed the scan of her unborn baby on my kitchen table embraced me to tell me she was pregnant, then left for work River, she said, if its a girl.
So maybe I can see an arm. Maybe I can see a leg. Either way, we are becoming acquainted Tonight the instruments are beyond me. The music is constant
Before Mercury melts and Venus has vanished Before temperatures rise and our oceans boil Before the ghost of our sun is outward bound There will be one last perfect day
sweat the felt screed the cement pack the joist level the cleat eat the piece hammer the nail string-line the future raise the bones build the skeletons whistle the windows into our rooms hoist your brushes sweep the sky
