Johanne Lee, proud Mancunian mother of 3, poet and author of 6 childrens picture books and two collections of poetry .Womans Journey and the newly released Under the lavender moon, as part of the Open Skies Spotlight series .All books raise for various charities . She can be found as Johanne Lee Author on Fb and instagram 

The Culling

I can’t speak for the dandelions
close as they are to the herbs.
Slumbering, idle of noticing
the weed puller counting out his blurb…
One snail, two slugs,
three for the butterflies,
and four for the bugs,
five for the dandelions.
Still they wet the bed
counting out the acronyms
of banished poisoned dead.

I can’t speak for the caterpillar
who’ll never watch the moon
from top side of a ragwort
in yellowing cocoon.
Six, he says, and maybe seven,
one more for his luck.
Killing weeds and all the needs
of soil who’s thunder struck.

I can’t speak for the lowly worm
wriggling amidst the carnage
eyeing up the sloth
and the lifeless cabbage moth
being raked into bags for the garbage.

Still the flowers never lose
being singled out to choose
petals growing precious til they prune…
Being nourished, water fed,
while the birds go search for bread.
A whole diversity wiped out in one afternoon.

On Watching Emily

Where the wind rattled her pane
and moors sang their opium
to be wide eyed and deemed odd
lest the mind its shutters open them

in corsetry of statement
bustling petticoat prose
wild …cries the wasteland
of a woman’s words closed

To muffle muse , fair lady choose
find thy chord and set it free
fling the pins let the hair flail frazzling
This  ode Emily …

flames that licked the poetry
to burn the yearn
has wounded me

I pray nothing shall be seen in my ashes
or lost to the air of brains flashes
and the spaces …
between the dot dots and my excruciated dashes

Let them be -
on the wind the words
Why … ( hand to breast breathless with dramatic discharge )
they have walked all over thee

I promise , vie and vow
to rsvp somehow