To the frozen north I flee. Another country.
Well a hid tae get awae couldn’y staun the pressure
n a couldn’y face the reality ο bein sae loved So
here in the room ο ma adolescence a’m awake again
before daylight filters perculated through bamboo
blinds Fearful
Paint dapples the morning
I paint
to make this space a sanctuary
for us
so that somewhere we have security
knowing
that as soon as we do our own place
should follow.
n the poor n the needy n the spiritually
lost are still here n the city gets greyer
again edges sharpened voices mair piercin in
desperation we try tae survive another winter here
in thatchur’s britain wains wi runnin noses auld wimmin
wi nae enough money fur heatin n the cauld the cauld
wirse than last year aye the cauld seems wirse than last year
the seventies promise of a better future tastes bitter on ma
tongue nae mair a wunder wit happened tae the semblance
ο tolerance now replaced wi mair bigotry in the wake ο
the anglo-irish agreement graffiti reminds us that
the bitterness remains n tho it isn’y ma main
concern it’s a shame fur the wains is it no
aye a shame fur the wains is it no?
1989