Coleridge on Scafell

He speaks his mind
in a Devonshire accent,
leaves home on a Sunday
morning for nine days
to walk around the Lake District.
He disregards the weather,
has no professional guide,
his thoughts high
on fresh air,
freedom and adventure.
He sees the wild, green panorama,
a sunset viewed from a sheepfold
with dreams for company.
A letter written on Scafell,
bruised ink on paper,
the thundery forecast
in a life,
with those clouds
that came from the sea.

Byron Beynon coordinated Wales’s contribution to the anthology Fifty Strong (Heinemann). Collections include The Echoing Coastline (Agenda) and Where Shadows Stir (The Seventh Quarry Press), which was launched in February 2023 at the birthplace of Dylan Thomas.