Winter Hedge- AB and Poetry

Nest photo copied onto tracing paper, Poem by Ruth Dallas (see below) Leaf/ink rubbings, Small cheque book calender page, string, childs playing card, scrap handmade paper and brown paper, twig, buttons.

As part of the 'Off the Page' Round Robin I get the chance to work on other people's Altered Books. This board book arrived in the mail the other day with the theme of 'Poetry.' I already had the poem chosen and the page came together very quickly even though it wasn't pre-planned. I love the way it turned out!

Here's the poem by NZ poet Ruth Dallas.

Winter hedge

How like shells they are, these deserted rain-bleached nests

half filled with small black leaves;

the green leaves that summer- long sang like waves

have left the now as shells on sand

are left for anyone to find.

To lift them from the tangled boughs

of theses deep sleeping hawthorn trees

would be like taking shells away

from all that gives them colour-

sea, sun and sand.

How sad they seem

and faded when you take them home.

Marvellously as they are made

with moulded earth and moss inlaid

with woven bark and straws and

warm with thistle-down

half their charm- even when the trees are bare

is in them being where they are.