shot glass
title
"... brevity is the soul of wit ..."
- William Shakespeare

Bio


Mandy Pannett has been a teacher for many years and now works freelance as a creative writing tutor in the local (UK) area in addition to running workshops and taking part in poetry readings across the country. She has won prizes and been placed in international competitions and has judged several competitions herself. She is the author of the novella 'The Onion Stone' (Pewter Rose Press). Four poetry collections have been published by Oversteps Books, Searle Publishing and SPM Publications. The title of her latest collection is 'All the Invisibles'.


Mandy Pannett


 

Residue

Unlit in stained glass the Virgin's cloak
is dull. By candle light the goblin ore of cobalt blue
will stun the heart.

I found a white bird on the shore
mangled, dead. Maggots, the shade of emptiness
squirmed in flesh. Still it was bird.
Feathers were thin as paper curls, ringlets, scrolls.

Now imagine flames on a shingle beach:
crackle of driftwood, apricot fire
samphire gathered at dusk from the marsh
settling into its ash.

Someone later
will rake the fire, use the ashes for window glass
paint a woman's blue cloak.