Have You Not Heard?

One of my poems. From Part Two: Place of Something That Comes Close, my debut published collection. Available to buy in paperback from Amazon Books, and as an eBook on Kindle, Kobo or Booktopia. Additional information at the bottom of this post.

Have You Not Heard?

Once upon a not-far-distant future I came upon a tired man, waiting by the shore. He stood alone upon an empty beach, apart from me. He seemed unsure of why he waited there, although not puzzled that he stood alone upon that shore, beside that sea, beneath that sun which shone on him and me. The sea, itself, was calm, and still, with barely any movement to disturb the thoughts of men who stand and wait for tides to turn and time to flick a page.

And so, oblivious to truth, we waited side by side. Two tired men beyond both time and tide.

The shadow of a man who never was and cannot be. (Illustration by Spike)

Something That Comes Close is the debut work of Scottish-born writer Dougie Herd, now living in Australia. Reflections on becoming, on the joy of simple things, on life's hopeful journey. Sometimes sad because life sometimes is. But never despairing or despondent. Cos life's too short.

• Pulse: memory, life and death, loss, dislocation.

• Place: here and there, then and now, home and somewhere else.

• Encounters: the unexpected.

• Foolish Things: some of which are not entirely pointless.

• Waving: the possibility of renewal, the necessity of change, the inevitability of silence.

Words by Dougie Herd. Illustrations by Spike Deane.

Buy your paperback copy at Amazon Books.

Available also on:

• Kindle Store

• Rakuten Kobo

• Booktopia