Poets tend to write about things that cause strong emotion: Death does do that. Plus, in my case, I tend to be surrounded by the remnants of death, and life. My poem The Dust of the Dead is about the dustiness in museums, and the dust that is probably little bits of bone: what I tend to call “Dead-guy dust”. Alan discusses how the term ‘luxury’ didn’t always refer to the most expensive Christmas Crackers; and he talks about his dad. Charli goes right to the heart of it with Graveyard. So, we discuss death and all that, but we’re not depressing! As Walter Mosley once wrote, “We’re the only animal that knows it will someday die.” Maybe, but he’s right about deadlines. Death does focus the mind and, ironically, reminds us to live. RD
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