Stands silently, foil to her own designs,

a perfect silhouette pressing on his memory,

a perfectly lost wife. Her slender arms ache

with undisguised longing, ghostly impressions

shadow dimly lit corridors, laughter fading,

forever out of reach. If she stays marble still,

in absolute lace perfection, she’ll avoid any

backward glance, defer her fading beauty.

Her youth slips before her, around her,

falling to the fur-bound floor, caught

by silver streams of moonlit drapes.

© Alison Hill

Picture 10292032, unattributed photograph, circa 1940, image copyright Mary Evans / Alinari Archives

Alison Hill’s latest collection, Sisters in Spitfires (Indigo Dreams 2015), celebrates the 164 women who flew with the Air Transport Auxiliary during the Second World War, flying anything to anywhere with a particular passion for the Spitfire. The research project was supported by the Arts Council. Previous collections include Peppercorn Rent (Flarestack 2008) and Slate Rising (Indigo Dreams 2014). Her work has also appeared in several anthologies, most recently in XXI Century World Literature, published in New Delhi in February 2016. Alison founded the monthly event Rhythm & Muse in 2007 and was Kingston Libraries’ first Poet in Residence. More details at www.alisonhillpoetry.com