Gordon Ferris was born and raised in Finglas, a North West suburb of Dublin. In the early eighties, he moved to Donegal where he has lived ever since. He started writing in 2014 and has had many short stories and poems in publications including Hidden Channel, A New Ulster, The Galway Review, Impspired Magazine, and Lothlorien Poetry Journal. He has also won prizes in the summer 2020 HITA Creative Writing Competition for his poem ‘Mother’, and won the winter competition for his poem ‘The Silence’. Gordon was awarded a Poetry Town Bursary by Poetry Ireland.

Putting the words down

all I ever wanted to do  
is put the words on paper 
 
but never could  
because life got in the way 
 
because love  made my day 
because a bigger love 
 
came along and  
joyously blocked my way  
 
then I envisage   
the dilemma of Pandora  
 
of imaginings beyond  
her wildest dreams 
 
of temptation to open  
the wondering jar 
 
her expectant prize, uncertain. 
darker than her brightest past 

I exist.

My only wish
is never to 
feel oppressed
by 
the fact
that 
I do 
exist

And

that
all men of God
be made 
share a room
with twenty sinners
just to 
test their faith
and to    piss them off

the onset of spring

hush, hush quiet here 
all sound of appliances-off 
the rain; drip, drip 
outside the curtained window

wind howls and 
rocks the wheely bin 
weighted down 
by our daily trash 

On a waters edge 
by a lake in-land
I saw the floating 
fish suddenly move

I  witnessed a 
decaying flower 
come back in to life 
come into colour