1 poem
Dartmoor Ponies
In main-beam, drops are fire-flies drawn to light,
extinguished by wipers.
Our rented grate ignites on the second match.
As the blaze flickers, I explain how my gran,
illiterate, foretold the future in flames’ arrowheads.
We ignore dawn’s knocking; watch moor ponies
flock to thaw beneath the boiler vents, their colours
patchwork: a soot-maned russet, ditch-white
mare, a pregnant piebald.
In this pause, your face loses its edge
as brandy overcomes your pains.
This isn’t the doorstep to happiness but its essence,
the gaping whole of it–
rain licking thin-paned glass & no alarm set.
Kitty Donnelly has recently had poems included in a range of magazines, including The Rialto, The Honest Ulsterman and the Dear Dylan anthology. Her first collection, 'The Impact of Limited Time', was published in 2020. She has an MA in Creative Writing from MMU & won a Creative Future Award in 2019. She has supported people suffering from mental health issues for many years, rescues animals and lives in West Yorkshire.