Live Encounters Poetry & Writing January 2026.
Night, poem Noel Monahan.
Night
Night
Comes early now,
Moonstruck:
I start to count the stars
On Orion’s Belt
Quavers and quivers
Of a ghost song on The Wind
“Alnitak …. Alnilam ….Mintaka …
Playground of light
Everywhere tonight
I see
The shadow of a hare
Licking his paw in the moonlight
Silently listening to the dark.
Winter mornings are
Always slow to brighten.
© Noel Monahan
Noel Monahan is a native of Granard, Co. Longford, now living in Cavan. He has published seven collections of poetry with Salmon Poetry. An eight collection, Celui Qui Porte Un Veau, a selection of French translations of his work was published in France by Alidades, in 2014. A selection of Italian translations of his poetry was published in Milan by Guanda in November 2015: “Tra Una Vita E L’Altra”. His poetry was prescribed text for the Leaving Certificate English, 2011- 2012. His play: “Broken Cups” won the RTE P.J. O’Connor award in 2001and Chalk Dust, a long poem of his, was adapted for stage and directed by Padraic McIntyre, Ramor Theatre, 2019.
During the Covid-19 lockdown, Noel had to reinvent his poetry readings, and he produced a selection of Short Films: “Isolation & Creativity”, “Still Life”, “Tolle Lege” and A Poetry Day Ireland Reading for Cavan Library,2021. Recently, he edited “Chasing Shadows”, a miscellany of poetry for Creative Ireland.
His ninth poetry collection, “Journey Upstream” was published by Salmon Poetry in April 2024. Noel’s new publication in France entitled “Les Russes Arrivent”, “The Russians Are Coming”, translated by Emmanuel Malherbet and published by Alidades is his10th. Collection.