The Wild Wight Podcast

Hi everyone, I know this blog has been rather silent for the past few months. Largely, it’s because I’m actually getting better at self-care and thus not forcing myself to do anything I’m not truly up to. As blogging takes quite a bit of energy, something I don’t tend to have much of, I’ve decided to only post when I have something noteworthy to share.

Which brings me to The Wild Wight Podcast, a new series about wildlife and conservation on the Isle Of Wight (where I live), which features interviews with local wildlife charities and organisations, as well as individuals with a keen knowledge of the natural world, and — I’m delighted to say — a selection of my #52weeksofnaturepoetry poems.

The first episode has just been released, so please do take a moment to check out The Wild Wight’s Facebook page, where you can find more information on what the podcast is about and how to listen to it: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100084422042612

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#52weeksofnaturepoetry Week 8 – A Flash of Colour in the Trees

Snap shot: bushy tail, red fur

floating between branches.

Limbs outstretched, eyes fixed on its destination.

Real time gives a delicate touch down, then a quick scurry up the trunk.

But wait;

something watches.

Freeze.                 Flatten.

Not here. Not here.

Danger passes, a flip in stance

and on the go again.

Another leap – this time a blunder. Almost.

Instinct twists its body, course correction,

advanced calculations performed in a glimpse of a second.

Safe landing

and a pawful of berries as the reward.

This poem is part of a project I’m doing to raise money for the RSPB, a UK wildlife conservation and protection charity. Being autistic, nature is often my only place of solace, and I want to do all I can to protect it. As I’m not very comfortable around other people, most of the standard ways of helping out (volunteering, sport-style fundraisers etc) were not a good fit for me, so I came up with #52weeksofnaturepoetry, where I have to post a nature poem here on this blog each week for an entire year without fail.

If you’d like to help, please share this poem to encourage others to take joy in nature, and if you have the time and means to donate, you can do so here. Let’s help keep our wildlife wild!

(This one might be a bit shorter than normal — my laptop broke a few days ago, so I had to borrow my partner’s, which doesn’t have my drafts on it, thus I didn’t have as much time for polishing.)