A Year of ‘Poet’s Corner’ and a new book!

As some readers of this blog may already know, I have been writing a weekly column for the Church Times called Poet’s Corner, and I have just completed my first full year in that role. Its been quite an adventure. I was more than a little daunted to begin with as I was following in the footsteps of the great Ronald Blythe, one of the finest writers of our day and something of a national treasure. His weekly column ‘The Word From Wormingford’ had been running on the back page of the Church Times for over twenty years, and in some senses he was an impossible act to follow. We had some things in common of course; a love of George Herbert and Thomas Traherne, a delight in the English countryside, a feel for the small, particular beauties of the local Parish, understood both as common ground and common prayer, but I could never, in any sense be him, or replace him. Happily all his columns are also gathered into a beautiful series of little books published by Canterbury Press. However, over the year I have been given permission to be myself, to spread my wings a little and to share my observations, my joys, and such small insights as have come my way. I am happy to say that Canterbury Press have liked what they’ve seen so far and have proposed to publish a collection of these fugitive pieces which will come out as a little book in November. Meantime, if you’d like to sample a few the Church Times have set up a page with the links handily gathered together which you can find Here

I’ve also picked out some you might enjoy as a sampler:

Here’s one about pausing on a morning walk with my two dogs and being entranced by a single raindrop:

Here’s one about my love of books and the sense of literary kinship and communion:

and here’s one about feeling the truth of Gray’s Elegy, as I too paused at dusk in a country churchyard

I hope you enjoy these and I’ll keep you posted about the book when I have a publication date (and a title!)