When

Harnessed to the town hall clock,
you send seconds like wild horses
loose into the sky.

You decide the very moment of birth,
how much to fill a glass.
Unlocking you will find a killer, a liar, a thief.

Pale shadows of you are under the eyes
of a young woman
as she waits at the station

watches an empty train arrive
sees it open its doors
for no one to get off.


• Helen Ivory's second collection of poems The Dog in the Sky was published by Bloodaxe last year.