An Iron Age Re-Enactment Poem by Margaret O Driscoll

An iron age re-enactment -
greeted by men holding spears
Invited in to the round house,
they tell of their joys and fears

One tribesman sharpens a spear,
another sits braiding thread
In a corner lie sheepskin rugs
for a cozy communal bed

Silverweed drying by the fire,
is used as a gargle for throats
A woman twists a quern round,
grinding a bowlful of oats

Seeds from Fat-hen in jars,
a protein and mineral-rich snack
Woad leaves soak in hot water,
blue body-ink for times of attack

Hunters return with wild fowl
to be cooked in an oven of clay
I sit by a fence of willow
feeling I'm back in the day