photo: Naomi Woddis Copyright 2011
Jill Abram is a prize-winning poet who writes as well for the page and mind as she does for the ear and audience. She has been described as "poignant and funny" and having "mischief and poise", her poems have been described as "satirical and quirky" and she has great appeal to those who think they don´t like poetry, as well as those who know they do. Jill is Director of the poetry collective Malika´s Kitchen.
The following poem won the inaugural Poetry Pulse competition in 2010:
Remnants of Beauty
On a lilac fur-topped stool, she sits
while a tinny transistor hurls out hits.
She opens her mouth to stretch her eyes,
brushes mascara on her lashes
to darken, lengthen, volumise.
A spray of scent from an atomiser,
the doorbell dingdongs and she´s gone.
Faded pinks of primula petals pressed
under the glass of the dressing table.
On top, a dusting of rouge, a sprinkle of blue,
a crumpled, lipstick-kissed tissue.