Jean Renwick Poems

I stand by the river looking at darkness.
There is the moon and there are stars
though I don't know which constellations are what.
The moon reflects bright and gently rippled
...

Tentative,
Like a blind person seeking permission
To feel you.
Not to feel your skin, for I already know its softness.
...

When we were young, I used to laugh as you kicked
fallen leaves into the air
and slashed with an imaginary sword.
All that aggression giving rise to nought.
...

Sunrise like fire,
bleeding pink, orange, yellow
into the sky and
onto the buildings below.
...

I dreamed of solitude.
Now those dreams lie broken and bruised.
You have crawled into my veins
And made a nest in my heart.
...

The sand dunes of tomorrow –
Though they shift constantly with the wind –
Are no more forgiving than your diamond eyes.
...

You spend time with strangers,
Giving your body to lovers
And you think that you’re free.
...

What is this grief that lingers
after the time of mourning is past?
What is this joy that fades
before it is truly realised?
...

Summer when the sun and flowers and celebrations be.
Summer whose joys and rites are dead to me.

Autumn drying and bare with approaching fears.
...

Curious as a new leaf in its first dew,
here at last to drink the sight of you.
I wonder if I compare, under the same scrutiny.
...