
Pride
After the rain
we trooped with rainbow flags
past buildings spotlit by the sun
against the dark smudge of loaded clouds.
A straggling, motley bunch,
we gathered in solidarity
to share, to encourage
and to remember.
As we listened to rallying words
of inclusion and love
and the diversity of creation,
a seven-hued arc
flamed against the charcoal sky
– each colour distinct, yet
joined in song,
without need of borders or hard edges.
Making our song,
against the dark clouds of hate and menace,
more vivid and more resolute.
poem by Piers Northam
after a gathering in Harlow to mark the end of Pride month
30 June 2022