Paula Puddephatt

Slice of bread hits duck,

Who looks at us,
...

...

She's jaded and nobody understands.

They're afraid to humour or indulge her.
...

if I stuff my head full
of poetry
song lyrics
Tweets
...

tonight
a woman's
raven black tears
falling
...

Each tree has
so many branches, twigs and leaves,
each of which is a true
religion, denomination,
...

can I just admit that
sometimes
I don't know what to say
where to start
...

my thoughts and emotions
all night all night
I toss them around
all night all night
...

We recite the same words every Sunday.
We all “know that The Church is true”.
There is no doctrine on the Goddess,
“The Qu’ran” – or any other view.
...

As indigo skies dissolve
Into jet-black,
Her silver shimmer
Gently answers
...

I hardly ever leave the house these days.
The past few years, to me, are just a haze.
I cannot find my way out of this maze,
And have no more constructive points to raise.
...

Meet their disappointing daughter,
with her disappointing ways.
They would oh-so-love to humour her,
but it really never pays.
...

I hold the pain inside.
It breaks my heart and mind
and will not be denied,
diluted or defined
...

music
from local ice cream vans
can soon sound sinister
not sweet
...

and so
discover innocence
simplicity
once more
...

when you think
that you have hit
rock bottom
...

If I believe
in the beautiful lies,
I am deluded -
...

she offered me
a plan B
didn't recognise the complexities
of why
...

loose ends
those stray threads that
snag
on every sharp edge
...

enclosed
inside my mind
a terrified child
still finding her way
...