I walked over two broken bridges
one unnamed hump of island
onto Langenholmen
a notice to please keep to the path –
no more than an animal track, through clover & harebells –
to nine bright houses, front doors wedged open
though I saw no one; an upturned boat
planks missing, prow to sky
across the water; a sheer mountain, snow in a col
arctic terns swooped & keened
this end of the island had its own drama
I walked its length over quartz, through grasses
in a screeching wind
the sea ran past me
I was at the edge of the land, the edge of myself
I’ve been nowhere like it
was it fear, elation, awe, I didn’t know
how to feel or be
no human presence but
a violence –
here was a stone tower, taller than a woman
no way out, no way back
