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11th October, 2024

Friday Poem – ‘The Blood, Oh The Blood’ by Carrie Etter

Close up photo of floral curtains

This week’s Friday Poem is ‘The Blood, Oh The Blood’ by Carrie Etter from her collection Grief’s Alphabet in honour of it having been Highly Commended by the Forward Prizes and featured in the Forward Book of Poetry 2025.

The Blood, Oh the Blood
The month after your death,
the month I searched, gathered, sorted,
begged, wept, argued, and slept,
I bled and didn’t wonder.
I bled again and did
and asked why
and though you were everywhere–
the curtains’ cornflower meadows,
an Irish novel bookmarked Best Mum,
the silvertone watch on the dresser
still improbably ticking
without the company of your pulse–
you didn’t answer or
you were the answer,
the loss my body
revolted to bear.