Ian O’Brien
The swallows return regardless,
forgive us our trespasses,
though the things they have seen
have sent them mad, wheeling
as if to turn back the tide.
Throats as red as lifejackets,
song as shrill as babies’ cries:
Stay in the sky, stay in the sky.
Ian O’Brien is a teacher living in the Cambrian mountains. His novelette-in-flash ‘What The Fox Brings In Its Jaw’ was published by Retreat West in 2021 and his debut novel ‘Slow The Road Shows’ will be published by Black Bee Books in October, 2026. Say hello on socials @ianobrienwriter, though he’ll probably be out in the wilds somewhere.
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