1.
Seduced to a new place
which distorted vision
and altered behaviour.
2.
Go back into the past,
examine what’s under the scab.
3.
Return, do it again,
dig deeper.
4.
Don’t say,
turn things over in
silence.
5.
There’s no hurrah because
you’re inside the
process;
at the right time
movement starts
in unity.
This poem was inspired by ‘À cent quatre vingt degrés’ by Algerian poet Samira Negrouche. In working on that poem I heard resonances of Wales, a nation regarded by many as being under English and then British colonial rule since the 1500s. The recent spread of Cofiwch Dryweryn graffiti throughout Wales runs alongside the growing call for independence. If you wish to read more about Cofiwch Dryweryn, this book is an excellent place to start.
Image and words ©Susan Walton 2019.