Sheaves of wheat mechanically embraced in field after field, then meticulously sealed in bin-bag black, scraps catching at hedgerows all winter – remnants of another harvest. Late March. These same fileds lie cased in silver – not with an overnight dusting of snow, not from the sparkle of a late frost, slow to burn off, but thanks […]

‘I’ve come to exorcise the machine,’ He said, handing me his cloak And scarf. His clerical collar Gleamed in the dim, badly-lit hall. I led him to my exercise bike, Which he straddled with his large, Overweight frame and began to Pedal, slowly at first then Furiously and as he pedalled, His whole body began […]

With a turn of my wrist the spring winds with a twist. Figures of Saints and Apostles parade from door to door While inside the clockwork dances a twelvesome reel, Turning hands to tell the hours for those who mark them. Church and Barony alike regard me with suspicion. People gaze in wonder and in […]

Come, sit closer child, let’s share our warmth as the fire dies. I will tell you how it used to be.   First there was the wheel, to help us and our beasts carry great burdens for miles. Then the cog, which we put into ferocious machines to do more work. Next, the circuit gave […]

Losing my way one heaving, stormy night, I blundered onto the bridge – where perhaps I was not meant to be – and there took fright: the wheel untended, no one there! Who keeps the watch? my former naval voice called out, unheard by winking, clicking instruments. Green water shuddered ship and me. I sensed […]

Relax: why do you feel obliged to know how storm clouds part revealing   in a flash, a thunder crash, the starry Queen of the Night?   or how light alone can simulate the granite walls of Valhalla?   Better keep the mystery, the innocence of your eyes.   If you must, then bray: ‘So, […]

I come back to the metronome: its pent up nag of a prim aunt, finger set to wag, bossy tuts buttoned to the clip at its throat.   I have always known how to wind it up, that rack of the key, those clicks like a stick along railings of the weight up the pendulum […]

It comes in two basic styles and a limited range of rather drab colours.   Breakdowns are frequent. Repairs are difficult, spare parts unobtainable. There is no guarantee. The manufacturer has gone out of business.   The instruction manual is written in an unknown language. The diagrams refer to an earlier model.   It does […]