‘#StormRachel’ by Stephanie Conn

The storm does not yet exist
but she’s been given a name
and a hashtag.

Warnings are in force. The maybes
have begun – there may be disruption
to ferry crossings, to the electricity supply …

She is gathering herself out at sea,
riding the jet steam over the Atlantic.
She is stealing strength.

She is.

She has been depressed for so long,
with no-one listening, no sign of light.
She lies low, allows the pressure to build.

Her breath rises and cools –
falls as rain, then sleet, then snow;
hailstones the size of gallstones,

galvanized to ensure they smash
through unsuspecting windscreens
before they melt.

From issue #1: autumn/winter 2015

About the Author
Stephanie Conn is an award-winning poet. Her poetry collections The Woman on the Other Side (2016) and Island (2018) are published by Doire Press. Her pamphlet Copeland’s Daughter (2016) is published by Smith/Doorstep. She is currently a PhD researcher at Ulster University.