The Friday Poem

A poem every Friday

The Friday Poem on 02/06/23

We chose ‘Collateral’ by Helen Evans to be our Friday Poem this week for its clarity – of both thought and language – and for the message of hope it carries. We love the way that each stanza contains exactly and only what it needs, while still leading into the next – it’s like jumping lightly from one stepping stone to another. Evans creates a journey in words that takes us to a good place; the poem is a template for finding peace in the moment.

Collateral

And if you let go, for a while,
of whatever is damaging you,
and head for a good place

like this woodland, whose heart
was ripped out by bombs 
dropped in the last war,

and if you rest in the cupped hand 
of a coppiced sweet chestnut,
and breathe in the bluebells’ scent,

and wait until the sunset 
bursts through bright May foliage
into craters blue with flowers,

you’ll see bent heads transformed
by a shift in light that outlines
each frail curl-edged bell 

along one shaft of sunlight,
which, you’ll slowly realise, 
illuminates you, as well.

Helen Evans facilitates Inner Room, a project that creates space for people to be creative. Her debut pamphlet, Only by Flying, was published by HappenStance Press. Her poems have been widely published, including in The Rialto, The North, and Magma. In 2021, her poem, That Angel Hovering, was a joint winner of the Manchester Cathedral 600 Poetry Competition. She has a master’s degree with distinction in Creative Writing (University of St Andrews). www.helenevans.co.uk 

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