Live Encounters Poetry & Writing September 2025
Flying South, poems by Phil Lynch.
Flying South
There is rain in the wind,
the first of the Brent Geese
have landed below in the park,
a spaceship floats among the stars,
our thoughts return to journeys made,
car packed to the gills, full of giddy fun,
compass set, as we hurtled towards the sun.
Evening in Tossa
They sit with their backs to the sea,
their faces to the evening sun.
The purr of the tide on the breeze
soothes the squalls of scavenging gulls
flailing around a fisherman’s boat.
Quiet chatter ripples the beach,
great splurges of laughter erupt,
friends caper and shout in the waves
till the church tower bell above
calls them home to close out the day.
The clangs on the hour send scatters
of birds in a frenzy of flight
to flutter around the old square
until clamour of daytime gives way
to uncertain sounds of the night.
© Phil Lynch
Phil Lynch lives in Dublin (Ireland). His poems have appeared in a range of literary journals and anthologies, on Podcasts and CDs and have also been featured on poetry and arts shows on national and local radio in Ireland. He is a regular performer of his work at poetry and spoken word events and is the coordinator and co-host of Words by the Sea, a monthly open mic night by ArtNetdlr in Dun Laoghaire (Dublin). His latest poetry collection, Moving On (Salmon Poetry), was published in 2024. A previous collection, In a Changing Light, was also published by Salmon Poetry.