This poem and the photo are by my sister, Sue Bard, who lives in Portobello, Edinburgh
At 10pm I hear the exit poll
and everything’s in free fall.
All night
the news drifts in and out:
chickens chlorinating in the pool,
untreated 19th Century diseases,
a gated promenade,
the planet melting and burning.
In the still-dark dawn
I walk along the prom
watching the darting dog will o’ the wisps
down where the waves break.
I do my forty lengths
sluicing away the night’s jabber.
Coming back, it is light;
six swans single-file,
children on their way to school
on scooters
and the café is putting its tables out.
Sue Bard 13.12.19.
Julia Bard 