Author: Turning the Stones

A poem which began life as a writing exercise on an Arvon course, remembering a happy childhood, and lots of book reading!

“Welsh place names run as bright, incandescent threads through the long and tangled weave of memory” … Continue readingWHERE GIANTS SLEEP

A poem about the journey of the beautiful River Dee in North Wales, from its source in Snowdonia to the magnificent Dee Estuary, beautifully read by Keith Humphreys. Click to listen: https://fb.watch/qNfSAI7Nl9/ TAITH AFON DYFRDWY Sibryda llais Aerfen yn ddistaw bach Drwy greigiau Dduallt, ar … Continue readingTAITH AFON DYFRDWY – JOURNEY OF THE RIVER DEE

Suddenly, a spotlight falls: in its beam, dust swirls. At a subtle gesture from the Musical Director, the quiet singing of tens of men begins. Barely audible, the controlled sound gradually builds and swells with a rich, resounding beauty, filled with more than musical notes … Continue readingVoices of The Valley

A wistful look back to the lost days of childhood. Words: Sonia Goulding, composed and performed by @ElfinBow. AND THEN, THE DAWN Do you remember when The day came young and bright To greet us, with a promise in her hands? When we ran out … Continue readingAND THEN, THE DAWN

Here is the latest of my Welsh language poems about the River Dee (English version below). Many thanks to my brother-in-law, Brian Bishop, for permission to use his stunning image as my cover photo. Y FFIN AFLONYDD Goruwch Llanuwchllyn Yng ngwyllt Eryri, Mae Afon Dyfrdwy’n … Continue readingY FFIN AFLONYDD – THE RESTLESS BORDER

The captivating and insistent song of a bird draws me out into the garden at around 7.30 pm.  It is unseasonably warm, the evening light diffused and soft.  I follow the sound, and discover the little bird, a robin, singing his heart out at the … Continue readingSEPTEMBER SKETCH AT TWILIGHT

I come from a house in the air with no garden, but railings we’d climb without fear, near the clanging shipyard and the sound of the hooter, where sometimes we’d wait by the gates for my dad.  I come from streets where the rag and … Continue readingTHE TIME BEFORE

Anxious, and trying to make sense of the situation late one night in the middle of the second UK lockdown, I was searching through the news headlines on AOL, and started playing around with them to see what I could come up with. These are … Continue readingNOT NECESSARILY IN THE RIGHT ORDER

“Stones dream of shapes they might become. The sculptor has but to listen.” Thurin-Jon
… Continue readingTHE SCULPTOR