Book Week Scotland is nearly upon us,
and as well as running around in my day job enticing teenagers to talk about
books and convincing five year olds that voting for their favourite book is
their constitutional right, a poem I’ve penned will be soaking up the wildlife
at Eskrigg Nature Reserve all next week. This is part of a Scottish Book Trust
and Muirhall Energy funded project where my local writing group worked with the
writer, Eryl Gasper Dick of Curious Authentic Ink, to create nine poems on the
theme of future and the natural environment. They are all placed around a 3km
one way route at the reserve.
If you can’t face donning your wellies
and firing up a flask of coffee to wander round the reserve in the wind and the
rain (or you live too far away), here is my contribution. It was inspired by a
row of trees at Eskrigg Nature Reserve nicknamed ‘The Four Sisters’ by
visitors, and also by natural burials and their symbiotic relationship with
trees that mark a grave. Sadly, The Four Sisters are no more, but poetry
perpetuates their life.
The Fourth Sister of Eskrigg
She lies, naked and ashen. With nature
and
by three trees: The Three Sisters of
Eskrigg.
Her life was as demanding as a
newborn’s cry, but
her death was as elusive as the Scarlet
Pimpernel.
And as she sinks into the earth,
her toes root – grasping mulch then rock;
an anchor against storms.
Her body is wrapped in asperous bark
where
lichen lounge and fissures part no
secrets.
Her hair splays branches on which
squirrels
scrabble and squabble over snatched
nuts.
Her curls unfurl pea green leaves;
umbrellas offering
shade for transitory toads from wood to
pond.
Her immortelle – grass, bluebells and
notes of musk.
The Earth has taken back what it first
created,
for the circle of life must revolve and
evolve.
But her future is the tree she always
wanted to be:
to taste the life of the fourth to the
three.
She’s become The Fourth Sister of
Eskrigg.
(This poem is dedicated to Kelly)
I'm really pleased to read your poem and it revived memories of seeing the four tree stumps when we visited Eskrigg last year. I love the poem, but particularly liked the following phrase - 'Her body is wrapped in asperous bark where lichen lounge and fissures part no secrets. Beautiful.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your lovely comments. I'm so glad you enjoyed the poem and that it brought back memories of Eskrigg.
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