I remember going over
a bridge with my father
The Clyde’s muddy waters
flowed swirling below
The everyday world
was left far behind us
and lying before us
the new and unknown
I remember a smiddy
a huge humid cavern
a hammer’s loud clang
metallic and sharp
A fire spitting sparks
to the breath of the bellows
the flicker of flames
in the unquiet dark
I remember a horse
that shone in the darkness
its coppery coat
reflecting the flames
its mane a corona
of light and of fire
backlit by the furnace
and flowing untamed
I remember the scorching
the smell and the smoke
the wild rolling eyes
as the horse tossed its head
the hot steaming shoes
hammered home by the smithy
my dad’s hug dispelling
my feelings of dread
I was only a child then
not knowing such words as
astonished amazed
or spiritualised
And nor did I know
that this numinous scene
would shine in my mind
for the rest of my life
Epona – Celtic / Roman Horse Goddess
© Betty Craig April 2022
A special comic adaptation of this story has been created for Book Week Scotland by Ver.
Read Ver's comic adaptation of Epona