Gasp

Audio Version by Johnny Duncan

This is my third collaboration with sound engineer, Johnny Duncan, and I think we have succeeded in bringing a striking Celtic aspect to Ostara’s vocal range that suits the lyrics perfectly. The poem itself was originally published by The Madrigal Press Poetry Journal. Then it was republished by The Chained Muse and The HyperTexts, where it was the ‘Featured Poem’ for their June 2024 issue. All comments are most welcome.

I did not expect to find you here,
among these little shells and things
skittering from shore to shore
in a vast eternity of sea-foam;
but here you are, light years
from when I met you,
seeing the sea with eyes
still open to astonishment.

I did not expect to see you,
with your face lit up in eager joy,
nor to feel the fading day being charged again
by the sudden voltage of your touch;
but here you are, as the night undresses
in an alcove of dreams and moonbeams,
uttering the long tidal gasp
of a longing echoed from every shore.

Lyrics by Martin Mc Carthy.
Engineered by Johnny Duncan.
Sung by Ostara, a musical AI performer.

Author’s note:

Following its third publication in June 2024, ‘Gasp’ was added to ‘The Best of The HyperTexts’, a compilation of its best original poetry spanning over 30 years, by its editor-in-chief, Michael R. Burch.

Email from The Madrigal Press regarding ‘Gasp’

Dear Martin,

We found your work to be a truly striking, eloquent, and exceptional piece of art in the reading of our submissions, and we would be delighted to offer your poem 'Gasp' acceptance into our Verity issue. The swelling emotion, the elemental grandeur, your delicacy of reference to the subject. It is measured and marvellous. It is, quite frankly, exactly the type of piece we had in mind when drawing up the idea for this issue, and we cannot commend you enough on the sheer loveliness, thought, and talent you have put into this work. It would be an honour to publish it within this collection.

Warmly,

Helen and Tomás
THE EDITORS
The Madrigal Press, Dublin, Ireland.

Author’s Bio

Martin Mc Carthy is a contributing editor to the American poetry website, The HyperTexts. He lives in Cork City, Ireland, where he studied English at UCC and was awarded the H. Dip. in Education. His poems and essays have appeared in numerous print and online publications, including: Poems from My 5k, Drawn to the Light, Seventh Quarry Poetry, Poetry Salzburg, The Road Not Taken, The Lyric, The Orchards, WestWard Quarterly, Lighten Up Online, Better Than Starbucks, The Madrigal, The Chained Muse, New Lyre, The HyperTexts, The New Stylus, Southward and The Cathal Buí Anthology of Poetry. He has published three poetry collections: Lockdown Diary (2020), Lockdown (2021), and The Perfect Voice (2023). A fourth collection, The Book of Desire, is currently awaiting publication. He was shortlisted for the Red Line Poetry Prize, and is a nominee for the 2024 Pushcart Prize. He has a personal website at mccarthypoet.com