‘Dear Mr Swan,
your poetry
is different from anything
I have ever read before.
I thought you would like to know.’
‘Dear Sir,
when I read your poetry
I cannot help crying
all over my model power station.’
‘Yesterday
as my wife and I
sat in a rowing boat
on Loch Garvin
in the rain
reading each other your poems
we both felt we were sharing
an important moment.’
‘My sister Veronica
is a tank commander
in the Patagonian volunteer reserve.
In moments of stress
she derives great solace
from your work.’
‘Our cat
was stuck up a tree
for hours;
nothing would bring her down;
then we tried a couple of pages
from your Basingstoke Elegy.
An instant success.’
‘Before discovering your work
I was a humble insurance clerk.
Now I am the Cardinal Archbishop of Trier.
This is all due to you.’
‘A table
rocking on an uneven floor;
your latest collection;
serendipity!’