Poems by Anna Fletcher, England

The Write Time

Sometimes, it’s one thing

Sometimes, it’s another

Sometimes, it’s nothing

Sometimes, it’s no bother

To get it done is one thing,

To do it is another

To put it off is nothing

To wait, it’s no bother.

But all the while in waiting,

A seed does manifest,

Roots and stem are sprouted

Of ideas as good as best…

Themes find words

Words find lines

Lines find pages

Pages come to bind

And it is done

It is done

In its own time.

Though

Though we may never kiss the stars goodnight

And though we may never see the sun rise;

Though we may never watch starling take flight

Nor the tango of summers’ butterflies.

Though we may never catch salt on our skin

At a cliff-top overlooking the bay,

We may never feel the Keeper of Wind

Touch our faces on a brisk winters’ day.

Though, what if I were to explain to you

Of all the visions I have in my head

Where we stir together past morning dew

And you tell me you were hung by a thread…

Though as long as these words stay unspoken,

My heart and dreams will remain unbroken.

This Too Shall Pass

When she closed her eyes, everything was dark

when she opened her eyes, everything was dark

she opened the curtains, everything was still dark,

the sun, the moon, the stars were dark.

When she sat in the shade, she was cold

when she sat in the sun, she was cold

she lit a fire, still she was cold,

the sun, the shade, the fire were cold.

When she stayed in her house, she was lonely

when she walked among crowds, she was lonely

she sought out her friends but still she was lonely,

with people, without people, she felt alone.

Nothing had happened, nothing had changed,

the sky hadn’t fallen, the sun hadn’t estranged

but the dark got darker

the cold got colder

alone got lonelier.

Still, she opened the curtains,

she sat in the sun,

she lit the fire

spent time on her own

knowing that nothing is set to last

knowing that soon, this too shall pass.

We Are Sunflowers

(dedicated to best friends)

When all around is dark and grey

and wind brings rain and gloom,

when the sun is just too far away

and your fire is but a fume…

Somewhere in a field nearby

a fallen seed did grow,

now stands a stem some six feet high

and behind her, row upon row;

nodding heads of yellow flames

fill fields like wildfire,

fanning, roaring lion manes

all follow one desire

but, they too face days dull, dim and blind

when the sun stays undercover,

yet when there is no sun to find

they turn towards each other,

face to face, those fumes ignite

even when the sun is blue,

for friends will lead you to the light

and bring the sun to you.

The Greatest Escape

Watching the clock

awaiting Witching Hour

with angst and trepidation,

calming the racing heart

that beats like a locomotive

shunting over sleepers

on its distant, long distance course.

Invisible rustles from sleepy silhouettes

disturb the near silence.

Doors are closed. An owl hoots

and Selene serenely slopes south,

peering into the windows

of her spotlight.

The scene is set. Relief sets in.

Curtains drawn, blankets pulled,

a favoured state ready to begin…

slow, rhythmic heartbeat

low, level blood pressure,

the busiest eyes of the day;

darting from corner to corner

like a pair of hummingbirds

across their tropical pond,

opening the dreamscape portal.

The mind, wide awake

in its greatest escape

before Dreamer awakens again.

 

Anna Fletcher is a poet, writer and editor from Plymouth, United Kingdom (UK). Several of her poems have appeared in numerous national and global anthologies and she has written plays which have been produced with success in her city. Fletcher also writes articles and fiction on literature and mental health and has a professional and academic background in special educational needs. Currently, her main role in life is taking care of her son who has autism and other disabilities. Fletcher co-edited Soflay Anthology of Microstories Volume 1 (2021) and Volume 2 (2023) with Dr Rehmat Changaizi. Her poems feature in each volume of the annual poetry anthology Whispers of Soflay.

Fletcher’s poetic works are also included in the Compendiums: Tried, Tested and True Poets from Across the Globe, Poetry Just Got Real with a Little Help From my Friends Across the Globe Anthology, Great Minds ‘Ink’ Alike Anthology, It’s Our Poems and We’re Stickin’ to It Anthology, the Writing On The Wall Global Magazines – Issues 1 and 2, by Author Reneé Drummond-Brown and masterful poets from across the globe. Fletcher is honoured to appear as the very first featured author in the Writing On The Wall Global Magazine-Issue 1, and so far contributes to subsequent issues.