David Atkinson
@davidatkinsonpoet.bsky.social
(he/him) Belfast/Coleraine poet. Black Eyed Peace, is available as free eBook from Wordpress, inc. the Pushcart nominated Hunting for the Aurora. MA student at MMU - davidatkinsonpoet.wordpress.com
My high school teacher asked us to share a favourite poem. She said my choice by Roland Bottrall was a poor example of a poem.
I said nothing. 40 years later I am certain she was wrong.
It has many poetic credentials, but most of all it has heart, and truth, and soul.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
I said nothing. 40 years later I am certain she was wrong.
It has many poetic credentials, but most of all it has heart, and truth, and soul.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
November 25, 2025 at 11:11 PM
My high school teacher asked us to share a favourite poem. She said my choice by Roland Bottrall was a poor example of a poem.
I said nothing. 40 years later I am certain she was wrong.
It has many poetic credentials, but most of all it has heart, and truth, and soul.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
I said nothing. 40 years later I am certain she was wrong.
It has many poetic credentials, but most of all it has heart, and truth, and soul.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
I love a sonnet.
The octave, general in terms, listing the necessities love fails to provide. Then in the sestet, more personal, and challenging the idea that ‘Love is All’. But even with that, at the end, the poet does not think she would trade or sell it for solace.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
The octave, general in terms, listing the necessities love fails to provide. Then in the sestet, more personal, and challenging the idea that ‘Love is All’. But even with that, at the end, the poet does not think she would trade or sell it for solace.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
November 24, 2025 at 7:33 PM
I love a sonnet.
The octave, general in terms, listing the necessities love fails to provide. Then in the sestet, more personal, and challenging the idea that ‘Love is All’. But even with that, at the end, the poet does not think she would trade or sell it for solace.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
The octave, general in terms, listing the necessities love fails to provide. Then in the sestet, more personal, and challenging the idea that ‘Love is All’. But even with that, at the end, the poet does not think she would trade or sell it for solace.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
Back home.
This is for the young lady I spoke with in Krakow station, asking if we were on the right platform for the airport.
She was going there too, at 7.00 on a Sunday, to meet her father (flying for the first time) & help him through security.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#poland
#kindness
This is for the young lady I spoke with in Krakow station, asking if we were on the right platform for the airport.
She was going there too, at 7.00 on a Sunday, to meet her father (flying for the first time) & help him through security.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#poland
#kindness
November 23, 2025 at 5:54 PM
Back home.
This is for the young lady I spoke with in Krakow station, asking if we were on the right platform for the airport.
She was going there too, at 7.00 on a Sunday, to meet her father (flying for the first time) & help him through security.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#poland
#kindness
This is for the young lady I spoke with in Krakow station, asking if we were on the right platform for the airport.
She was going there too, at 7.00 on a Sunday, to meet her father (flying for the first time) & help him through security.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#poland
#kindness
My last day in #poland
Take notice of the world; broken & scarred. Yet, amid this there is still wine and wild strawberries and gentle sunlight.
There is a quiet lyrical invitation to gratitude in this poem, to seeing ordinary miracles that persist in a wounded world.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
Take notice of the world; broken & scarred. Yet, amid this there is still wine and wild strawberries and gentle sunlight.
There is a quiet lyrical invitation to gratitude in this poem, to seeing ordinary miracles that persist in a wounded world.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
November 22, 2025 at 6:46 PM
My last day in #poland
Take notice of the world; broken & scarred. Yet, amid this there is still wine and wild strawberries and gentle sunlight.
There is a quiet lyrical invitation to gratitude in this poem, to seeing ordinary miracles that persist in a wounded world.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
Take notice of the world; broken & scarred. Yet, amid this there is still wine and wild strawberries and gentle sunlight.
There is a quiet lyrical invitation to gratitude in this poem, to seeing ordinary miracles that persist in a wounded world.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
Continuing with the #Poland theme
Różewicz presents a haunting testament to survival amplified by the juxtaposition of opposites.
That these can co-exist in a person.
What sometimes needs to be done to survive.
Life continues, but every breath carries memory.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
Różewicz presents a haunting testament to survival amplified by the juxtaposition of opposites.
That these can co-exist in a person.
What sometimes needs to be done to survive.
Life continues, but every breath carries memory.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
November 21, 2025 at 7:15 PM
Continuing with the #Poland theme
Różewicz presents a haunting testament to survival amplified by the juxtaposition of opposites.
That these can co-exist in a person.
What sometimes needs to be done to survive.
Life continues, but every breath carries memory.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
Różewicz presents a haunting testament to survival amplified by the juxtaposition of opposites.
That these can co-exist in a person.
What sometimes needs to be done to survive.
Life continues, but every breath carries memory.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
Continuing with the #Poland theme
We have all been here in this poetry reading. Nights when there were more readers than people in the audience.
'half are here because it’s raining, the rest are relatives’.
The ‘Poetry Reading’ by Wisława Szymborska
#poetry
#poemoftheday
We have all been here in this poetry reading. Nights when there were more readers than people in the audience.
'half are here because it’s raining, the rest are relatives’.
The ‘Poetry Reading’ by Wisława Szymborska
#poetry
#poemoftheday
November 20, 2025 at 5:35 PM
Continuing with the #Poland theme
We have all been here in this poetry reading. Nights when there were more readers than people in the audience.
'half are here because it’s raining, the rest are relatives’.
The ‘Poetry Reading’ by Wisława Szymborska
#poetry
#poemoftheday
We have all been here in this poetry reading. Nights when there were more readers than people in the audience.
'half are here because it’s raining, the rest are relatives’.
The ‘Poetry Reading’ by Wisława Szymborska
#poetry
#poemoftheday
I am on holiday in #Krakow #poland
The world doesn’t always end with thunder. Often it ends quietly, like when someone waters their flowers, or a child chases a butterfly.
Milosz asks us to pay attention to the small, ordinary moments that keep our humanity intact.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
The world doesn’t always end with thunder. Often it ends quietly, like when someone waters their flowers, or a child chases a butterfly.
Milosz asks us to pay attention to the small, ordinary moments that keep our humanity intact.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
November 19, 2025 at 12:55 PM
I am on holiday in #Krakow #poland
The world doesn’t always end with thunder. Often it ends quietly, like when someone waters their flowers, or a child chases a butterfly.
Milosz asks us to pay attention to the small, ordinary moments that keep our humanity intact.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
The world doesn’t always end with thunder. Often it ends quietly, like when someone waters their flowers, or a child chases a butterfly.
Milosz asks us to pay attention to the small, ordinary moments that keep our humanity intact.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
In Irish mythology ravens are omens of death or battle. They are bearers of both warning and wisdom. The sense of injustice in this poem is palpable. The third stanza is just brilliant ‘and you can’t pin water to a page’.
According to the Ravens by Annemarie Ní Churreáin
#poetry
#poemoftheday
According to the Ravens by Annemarie Ní Churreáin
#poetry
#poemoftheday
November 18, 2025 at 4:56 PM
In Irish mythology ravens are omens of death or battle. They are bearers of both warning and wisdom. The sense of injustice in this poem is palpable. The third stanza is just brilliant ‘and you can’t pin water to a page’.
According to the Ravens by Annemarie Ní Churreáin
#poetry
#poemoftheday
According to the Ravens by Annemarie Ní Churreáin
#poetry
#poemoftheday
In response to Horses Graze by Gwendolyn Brooks @deborahrosereeves.bsky.social remarked on its similarity to The Piece of Wild Things by Wendell Berry
Thank you 🙏
'I feel above me the day blind stars waiting with their light'
#poetry
#poemoftheday
Thank you 🙏
'I feel above me the day blind stars waiting with their light'
#poetry
#poemoftheday
November 17, 2025 at 8:56 AM
In response to Horses Graze by Gwendolyn Brooks @deborahrosereeves.bsky.social remarked on its similarity to The Piece of Wild Things by Wendell Berry
Thank you 🙏
'I feel above me the day blind stars waiting with their light'
#poetry
#poemoftheday
Thank you 🙏
'I feel above me the day blind stars waiting with their light'
#poetry
#poemoftheday
Continuing (almost) with the horse theme
This, from Layli Long Soldier's 'Whereas', is stark, brutal, and sobering in its narrative.
The searing collection addresses the wholly inadequate 2009 Apology to Native Americans, considers the definition of nativity
#poetry
#poemoftheday
This, from Layli Long Soldier's 'Whereas', is stark, brutal, and sobering in its narrative.
The searing collection addresses the wholly inadequate 2009 Apology to Native Americans, considers the definition of nativity
#poetry
#poemoftheday
November 16, 2025 at 12:56 PM
Continuing (almost) with the horse theme
This, from Layli Long Soldier's 'Whereas', is stark, brutal, and sobering in its narrative.
The searing collection addresses the wholly inadequate 2009 Apology to Native Americans, considers the definition of nativity
#poetry
#poemoftheday
This, from Layli Long Soldier's 'Whereas', is stark, brutal, and sobering in its narrative.
The searing collection addresses the wholly inadequate 2009 Apology to Native Americans, considers the definition of nativity
#poetry
#poemoftheday
Continuing with my reflection of horses, in Horses Graze by Gwendolyn Brooks there is a fierce contentment, an invitation into a moment of stillness, a longing for simplicity and peace.
‘that creature feet may press only on a few inches of earth at a time’
#poetry
#poemoftheday
‘that creature feet may press only on a few inches of earth at a time’
#poetry
#poemoftheday
November 15, 2025 at 12:07 PM
Continuing with my reflection of horses, in Horses Graze by Gwendolyn Brooks there is a fierce contentment, an invitation into a moment of stillness, a longing for simplicity and peace.
‘that creature feet may press only on a few inches of earth at a time’
#poetry
#poemoftheday
‘that creature feet may press only on a few inches of earth at a time’
#poetry
#poemoftheday
Beneath the cinemascope feel of this poem there is an acuity of observation, a connection with nature, a sense of love and loneliness.
It has some beautiful metaphors - ‘her long ear that is as delicate as the skin over a girl’s wrist’.
The Blessing by James Wright
#poetry
#poemoftheday
It has some beautiful metaphors - ‘her long ear that is as delicate as the skin over a girl’s wrist’.
The Blessing by James Wright
#poetry
#poemoftheday
November 12, 2025 at 9:32 PM
Beneath the cinemascope feel of this poem there is an acuity of observation, a connection with nature, a sense of love and loneliness.
It has some beautiful metaphors - ‘her long ear that is as delicate as the skin over a girl’s wrist’.
The Blessing by James Wright
#poetry
#poemoftheday
It has some beautiful metaphors - ‘her long ear that is as delicate as the skin over a girl’s wrist’.
The Blessing by James Wright
#poetry
#poemoftheday
Buzzing about this
The last 2 years has been the best of times
I could go back and do it all again.
Thank you Mrs A for your support and encouragement along the way ❤️
Kim Moore, Jean Sprackland, Andrew McMillan - you were amazing ❤️
The last 2 years has been the best of times
I could go back and do it all again.
Thank you Mrs A for your support and encouragement along the way ❤️
Kim Moore, Jean Sprackland, Andrew McMillan - you were amazing ❤️
November 11, 2025 at 7:37 PM
Buzzing about this
The last 2 years has been the best of times
I could go back and do it all again.
Thank you Mrs A for your support and encouragement along the way ❤️
Kim Moore, Jean Sprackland, Andrew McMillan - you were amazing ❤️
The last 2 years has been the best of times
I could go back and do it all again.
Thank you Mrs A for your support and encouragement along the way ❤️
Kim Moore, Jean Sprackland, Andrew McMillan - you were amazing ❤️
A lovely evening in Stormont (possibly the poshest venue I will ever perform in).
Congratulations to Ewen and Rhonda - great poems 😊
Delighted to receive this.
And such a joy to hear the kids reading their poems - the next generation
#poetry
#amwriting
#ulsterscots
Congratulations to Ewen and Rhonda - great poems 😊
Delighted to receive this.
And such a joy to hear the kids reading their poems - the next generation
#poetry
#amwriting
#ulsterscots
November 10, 2025 at 11:07 PM
A lovely evening in Stormont (possibly the poshest venue I will ever perform in).
Congratulations to Ewen and Rhonda - great poems 😊
Delighted to receive this.
And such a joy to hear the kids reading their poems - the next generation
#poetry
#amwriting
#ulsterscots
Congratulations to Ewen and Rhonda - great poems 😊
Delighted to receive this.
And such a joy to hear the kids reading their poems - the next generation
#poetry
#amwriting
#ulsterscots
On 13th January 1915 HMS Viknor sank of the coast of Tory island, Co Donegal. All hands were lost, 295 Royal Naval officers and men, including my grandfather’s cousin, Samuel Gourley.
We will remember them.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#remembranceday
#lestweforget
We will remember them.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#remembranceday
#lestweforget
November 9, 2025 at 10:37 AM
On 13th January 1915 HMS Viknor sank of the coast of Tory island, Co Donegal. All hands were lost, 295 Royal Naval officers and men, including my grandfather’s cousin, Samuel Gourley.
We will remember them.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#remembranceday
#lestweforget
We will remember them.
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#remembranceday
#lestweforget
I love the juxtaposition of the ‘big’ things the speaker hasn’t done to the ‘small things they have’. Then in the final stanza, that turning inward, that reflection on ‘what it does to you’.
‘It Ain’t What You Do, It’s What It Does to You’ by Simon Armitage, from Zoom!
#poetry
#poemoftheday
‘It Ain’t What You Do, It’s What It Does to You’ by Simon Armitage, from Zoom!
#poetry
#poemoftheday
November 8, 2025 at 12:41 PM
I love the juxtaposition of the ‘big’ things the speaker hasn’t done to the ‘small things they have’. Then in the final stanza, that turning inward, that reflection on ‘what it does to you’.
‘It Ain’t What You Do, It’s What It Does to You’ by Simon Armitage, from Zoom!
#poetry
#poemoftheday
‘It Ain’t What You Do, It’s What It Does to You’ by Simon Armitage, from Zoom!
#poetry
#poemoftheday
I'm still feeling the spirit of autumn
In this Lucille Clifton poem — the leaves’ fall becomes a metaphor for trust, surrender, and acceptance.
Faith is not clinging on, it's knowing when to let go 🍂
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#autumn
#fall
In this Lucille Clifton poem — the leaves’ fall becomes a metaphor for trust, surrender, and acceptance.
Faith is not clinging on, it's knowing when to let go 🍂
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#autumn
#fall
November 7, 2025 at 10:17 PM
I'm still feeling the spirit of autumn
In this Lucille Clifton poem — the leaves’ fall becomes a metaphor for trust, surrender, and acceptance.
Faith is not clinging on, it's knowing when to let go 🍂
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#autumn
#fall
In this Lucille Clifton poem — the leaves’ fall becomes a metaphor for trust, surrender, and acceptance.
Faith is not clinging on, it's knowing when to let go 🍂
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#autumn
#fall
Some thought provoking advice from Charles Baudelaire "Be Drunk” (Enivrez-vous)
Be drunk, be continually drunk. On wine, on poetry, or on virtue...
#poetry
#poemoftheday
Be drunk, be continually drunk. On wine, on poetry, or on virtue...
#poetry
#poemoftheday
November 6, 2025 at 7:32 PM
Some thought provoking advice from Charles Baudelaire "Be Drunk” (Enivrez-vous)
Be drunk, be continually drunk. On wine, on poetry, or on virtue...
#poetry
#poemoftheday
Be drunk, be continually drunk. On wine, on poetry, or on virtue...
#poetry
#poemoftheday
Very excited about this and looking forward to next Monday evening, in Stormont, no less!!
Congratulations to the other winners and highly commended poets
#poetry
#ulsterscots
Congratulations to the other winners and highly commended poets
#poetry
#ulsterscots
November 5, 2025 at 8:22 PM
Very excited about this and looking forward to next Monday evening, in Stormont, no less!!
Congratulations to the other winners and highly commended poets
#poetry
#ulsterscots
Congratulations to the other winners and highly commended poets
#poetry
#ulsterscots
Mrs A often complains the poetry I read/write/share is serious, gloomy, & downright depressing...
She may have a point, but to prove I'm not a one trick pony...
Just back from a forest walk, kicking through drifts of leaves - reminded of this by Brian Bilston
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#autumn
#fall
She may have a point, but to prove I'm not a one trick pony...
Just back from a forest walk, kicking through drifts of leaves - reminded of this by Brian Bilston
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#autumn
#fall
November 4, 2025 at 7:41 PM
Mrs A often complains the poetry I read/write/share is serious, gloomy, & downright depressing...
She may have a point, but to prove I'm not a one trick pony...
Just back from a forest walk, kicking through drifts of leaves - reminded of this by Brian Bilston
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#autumn
#fall
She may have a point, but to prove I'm not a one trick pony...
Just back from a forest walk, kicking through drifts of leaves - reminded of this by Brian Bilston
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#autumn
#fall
November 3, 2025 at 6:14 PM
There's a lot going on in this short poem - the play on words in the title, the cricket metaphor, and the complexity of language - wrapped up in tight little Ars Poetic
'Anglish' by Zaffar Kunial, from England's Green
#poetry
#poemoftheday
'Anglish' by Zaffar Kunial, from England's Green
#poetry
#poemoftheday
November 2, 2025 at 11:34 AM
There's a lot going on in this short poem - the play on words in the title, the cricket metaphor, and the complexity of language - wrapped up in tight little Ars Poetic
'Anglish' by Zaffar Kunial, from England's Green
#poetry
#poemoftheday
'Anglish' by Zaffar Kunial, from England's Green
#poetry
#poemoftheday
The understated tone of the title, the stillness and calm of the opening lines; belies the horror of the final couplet
'Meeting the British' by Paul Muldoon, from Meeting the British
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#antiimperialism
'Meeting the British' by Paul Muldoon, from Meeting the British
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#antiimperialism
November 1, 2025 at 2:53 PM
The understated tone of the title, the stillness and calm of the opening lines; belies the horror of the final couplet
'Meeting the British' by Paul Muldoon, from Meeting the British
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#antiimperialism
'Meeting the British' by Paul Muldoon, from Meeting the British
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#antiimperialism
For the day that's in it...
'All Hallows' by Louise Gluck - has a deep sense of loneliness and loss, that shifting between the seasons, and the final lines where the veil between this world and the next becomes thin
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#Halloween
'All Hallows' by Louise Gluck - has a deep sense of loneliness and loss, that shifting between the seasons, and the final lines where the veil between this world and the next becomes thin
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#Halloween
October 31, 2025 at 8:22 PM
For the day that's in it...
'All Hallows' by Louise Gluck - has a deep sense of loneliness and loss, that shifting between the seasons, and the final lines where the veil between this world and the next becomes thin
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#Halloween
'All Hallows' by Louise Gluck - has a deep sense of loneliness and loss, that shifting between the seasons, and the final lines where the veil between this world and the next becomes thin
#poetry
#poemoftheday
#Halloween