worms and poems

I opened up the oldest of my compost heaps , and as the first clods fell apart a mass of worms squirled out . A bright pink they were , I would have thought they'd be colourless hidden in the dark rot of earth and vegetables slowly  composting  . i lifted up a spadeful to take to mrs brown , the worms reeling in the sunlight , and realized i couldn't face the sight of her eagerly pecking them up , and making that gobbling chirp of delight , (  i gave her a freshly dug up chard plant instead ) , and i buried them in my empty veg patch . But instead of the worms wriggling down in delight they lay still and helpless under a sprinkling of fresh earth . I find all this under earth life exciting , and all related to the vast underground angel that i paint .

     I met Jehane markham  by mistake next to the vegetable shelf  in our local organic shop , and we had  coffee together , and  talked about how interesting it was getting older , and i ' confessed ' about this blog  -  my neck felt as if it might explode  , is that why some people get a sort of neck blush its never happened before , but  the confession turned out not to be one ,  but that  blogging might be - not quite a journal -  but  a creative link. Back home, inspired , i looked at Jehanes poems  , and immediately found one related to our conversation :
                                               IF YOU NEVER GROW UP
                                              
                               If you never grow up, does it matter?
                               If the years stack up
                               In a tower of shells
                               That might fall
                               Scattering over the sand like lost buttons
                               Under which you crawl
                               Revealing how dark you are
                               How raw inside
                               Moving with such tiny steps across the moving tide

And it goes on beautifully for 2 more verses      -      from her book :    Thirty Poems .