Lucy Atkinson - Apricity

Apricity

I take what I can of life. I breathe it in.

Photosynthesis.

I’m learning to grow again.

Forget darkness.

I’m painting over all the shadows.

Cracks in the pavement.

Try not to notice them.

When you look at it. It stares back.

There are days in the winter

with no sun at all.

Survive them.

Start learning. There’s something healing

in sunlight. In remembering

to breathe.

There’s a strange kind of music

just in being alright.

Lucy Atkinson

Lucy Atkinson is a North-East based writer currently studying a MA in Creative Writing at Durham University. She has placed poetry in several magazines including Acumen and Agenda. Her debut play 'As It Was' was recently published by lazy bee scripts.

How writing has affected Lucy’s wellbeing: Writing, particularly writing poetry, has always been a cathartic experience for me. Poetry allows us to not only give voice to even to the darkest thoughts and emotions that plague our mind but also to weave these thoughts into something beautiful and deeply moving. Having an outlet which helps us make sense of our turbulent thoughts and puts them to the service of making art is invaluable. Writing can do a lot of things but the most important thing it does is make us feel less alone.