‘What the wireless operator wishes she’s never seen’ by Moira Garland The name on the list of the drowned from the dark Atlantic burial ground: James Ward. He’d worked on our farm,a village man. Not a false alarm. I can’t reveal this convoy’s been destroyeduntil the sergeant says that it’s allowed. The Wards, our neighbours who had cried with my mother when my brother died in Egypt. Next day I’m home on leavepausing pausing for their grief. At last the dark-blue boy pedals his bike to their door to hand over the telegram of death.And I release my faithless breath. Meet the Poet Moira Garland’s publications include The North and Dreamcatcher and forthcoming in Stand, and Sarasvati. Recent anthology inclusions are The Brown Envelope Book (Culture Matters) and At Home in Our City (Leeds Poetry Festival 2021). Winner: Leeds Peace Poetry prize 2016. Twitter/Instagram: @moiragauthor Share this:Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Like this:Like Loading... Published by fragmentedvoices A small, independent press based in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK, and Prague, the Czech Republic View all posts by fragmentedvoices