Tom In The Upper Room Need me at all? If not… I turn and look at him. Like that. He just blows a kiss through the palm of his hand. The garden throbs with shadows, scatters spring along the gaps of branches, nibs of grass all scribbling nothing. I remember lockdown. Nowhere to go, not much to do. Fitting my hand to his side like the piece of a puzzle. Fingers wriggling into the warmth of his flesh. Unexpectedly soft as a newly healed wound.
Carolyn Oulton has been published in magazines including Acumen, Artemis, Envoi, The Frogmore Papers, from the edge, Ink Sweat & Tears, Nine Muses, Orbis, The Poetry Village, The Moth and Seventh Quarry. Her most recent collection Accidental Fruit is published by Worple Press. Her website is at carolynoulton.co.uk