New and old

Gentle grey clouds
drift low over
the waterside hills
a hint of sun

As July closes
and summer wears on
as the tide rises
and falls

A new creation
takes shape
on the
water's edge

The old went away
its spirit
drifted out
on the outgoing tide

Cats

Whenever I think of you
I think of cats
usually
black

Torran I met
She was distraught
when you
never came back

I don't know
what happened to
Faili after
you left Uist

Spooky
stayed behind
after
you left Tigharry

Torran will always
be at
The Window on the West
waiting for you

Your life

Darkness creeps out
from the midnight sky
as summer reaches
towards its height

Music will soon
emanate from
beside the harbour
here in Stornoway

Music was your life
The sea was your life
The sky was your life
and they remember you

The machair
whispers your name
the roads lie silent
remembering your dance

The black shadow
remembers you
and still waits
in the Window on the West

Will she yet come
striding up the path
oh she will, little one
beyond the Rainbow Bridge

You're in the light
swimming strong
your voice, your laughter
lighting up the heavens

After the solstice

Eight months have passed
since you passed
out of this life
into the great light

The solstice is gone
our light will now diminish
but yours will remain
to light up our memories

As the full light of summer
now wreaths
the empty lands
of Uist

Where beaches
and machair
the sea itself
whisper your name

Where the black shadow
looks out of
the Window on the West
still awaiting your return

Your voice remains with us
recorded for all time
Your spirit remains with us
as we remember you