Estelle Price

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At the end of therapy

I cut an aumbry into stone,
two shelves recessed, unlit—regret’s

chiselled new home. A place to store the secrets
I tissue in code. Deep in the womb I hide

a hive of bees gossiping in the gloom.
Beside their wooden box I store
a bowl of splintered shells—another’s dreams
I leant on with my palm, and by the door I lodge

a basket packed with shredded photos
of a gibbous moon. I lock my cabinet 
with a whale bone, walk away
mouthing prayers in pink. And when the bell sings

for Compline, only I recall the meaning 
of two wickless candles, surrounded by stone.

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ESTELLE PRICE is the winner of the 2023 Welshpool Poetry Competition and the 2023 Mairtín Crawford Award amongst many others. Before she knew she was a poet she was a lawyer, a classicist, a charity worker. Twitter: @EstelleHPrice Instagram: @estellehelen