April is National Poetry Month, and to mark the occasion we'll be sharing some of our favourite poems from collections we've published over the years. Today's poem is "Cedar Cove, Revisited" by Douglas Walbourne-Gough from the collection Crow Gulch.

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"Cedar Cove, Revisited"
by Douglas Walbourne-Gough

for John Steffler

No straight lines to square yourself.
Even horizon reads harsh — grey seas
butt shore and sky. Bearings taken from
the hunched back of Guernsey Island.

Here, hands were rough-hewn, akin
to volcanic coast. Digits of crag crammed
close, clamped on spades and hatchets,
mended nets. Clung to what little food this
shallow soil allowed. Nails worn blunt and
broken, bulged knuckles gnarled from
the brutal fusion of Earth’s work.

Land this old knows better than to beg,
knows you’ll come back hungry — questions
circling your skull like a flock of gulls.
Accept this rock, its odd love.

Grab your own copy of Crow Gulch by Douglas Walbourne-Gough here, or check out the rest of our poetry collection here.