That day we looked at the world
through the pleated windows
of the ice. Circles we pulled
out of buckets, and the old green water butt.
We saw light, and crazy shapes
bent and kaleidoscoped,
and our fingers froze a little,
and the water dripped, until
the ice slipped, suddenly, shattering.
An ice quadrille for Mish at dVerse.
I miss the future – you know –
the shiny one, all ergonomic curves
and silver screens. The clean one.
I miss that hope. I miss the boldly going,
peace and prosperity, all that stuff.
Perfectibility. Hoverboards. Utopia.
What are we stumbling into?
Rain and the lights failing. Nobody home.
A bold quadrille for De at dVerse.
Some days, she forgets herself –
sugars the countryside,
adds candy colour skies –
a drift of birds –
and then remembers who she is:
monochromes the world,
deadens the light.
Some nights, she throws clouds,
but sometimes she can’t bring herself
to hide the stars. She can’t resist
the sparkle of them.
A quadrille for Mish at dVerse. Our word is “candy”.
All that sunlight
trapped here. A hundred years
of sleep in a green tower –
sunlight gathered, woven
into something solid,
light that murmured,
light that swayed,
light that knew the taste of soil
and the sound of birdsong
and the dark –
and we have woken it –
warmth spilling out,
golden and dancing
goddess again.
A quadrille for Ms Jade Li at dVerse. Our word is “warm” – perfect prompt for this time of year!
When the wind is high
and the waves leap and roll –
white maned horses
galloping ashore –
they say you can hear the bells
in the steeple ring,
and a child might stir,
or a mother turn in her sleep,
or a grandfather murmur a prayer,
but nobody wakens now.
A quadrille for Kim at dVerse – 44 words, including the word “bell”. Come and join us.
“My wife and I”, he said,
and everybody cheered.
After, we gathered round them –
“You’re punching, mate”
somebody said, “You’re punching”
and, smiling
he acknowledge it,
accepted it. Embraced it –
and she moved closer, nestling
in his circling arms, bird to his bear:
a small boat resting
in safe harbour.
a quadrille for dVerse – 44 words including tonight’s word: punch
there are fish of many types –
silver flashes of lightning
deep grey of storms,
rippling, shimmering
shoals of showers –
suddenly there, suddenly gone –
sunlight falls through
green reeds, swaying,
summer rains
dart and dazzle and dance,
and the clouds drift on.
A quadrille for De at dVerse – 44 words, including today’s word – “type”
Inspired by an image on Twitter from @PaulDragonwolf1
Maybe it’s that moment
when you wake from sleep
and the world is suddenly strange –
glistening with
noises that shimmer at the edge of sight –
heavy with light that presses on your skin –
the smell of sunshine, lemons, clockwork –
that moment is the one
that really matters,
that changes everything
I’m hosting for Quadrille Monday at dVerse tonight – and our word is “sleep”. But I kind of had to subvert my own prompt! Come and join us, anyway. Quadrilling is fun.
because there’s so much static on the line
that I can hardly hear your voice.
Everything I touch explodes
and the clouds are pressing down
on every roof of every house.
I’m worn dumb with waiting,
and the sky is swollen
like a bruise.
A quadrille for Mish at dVerse. Our word is “static”.
Her taste is spicy – she loves
that chilli burn, the warmth
of peppercorns. She seasons.
She likes those
rich brown flavours –
nutmeg cinnamon,
cumin cardamom
She squeezes lemons,
grates the yellow rind,
she chops the green herbs
coriander rosemary
oregano thyme
basil tarragon
she gingers, garlics,
tastes and tastes again
wonders what’s missing
A quadrille for Lisa at dVerse. Our word is “season”
Sarah writes poems 