Sagrada Familia is Helen Anderson’s exploration of the isolation and erasure involved in loss, and a reflection on the things which sustain us during hard times. Written in the aftermath of her becoming a widow only a few years after the death of her teenage daughter, these poems take us from the agony of initial grief through to progress towards healing.
The trajectory of this journey is far from smooth: Sagrada Familia outlines the fragmentary nature of living with bereavement, lifting the cover on the private reality beneath outward appearances of everyday survival. The poet shares her attempts to frame a language to deal with multiple shifts in normality, whether on the beaches of her home in the North East of England or abroad. Like a soundtrack which persists even when the backdrop changes, raw pain persists in the face of attempts to find comfort in travel, nature, religion, and the re-shaping of memories: the only way forward is to allow it to run its course.
Developing its motif of light forcing through darkness, Sagrada Familia ends on an uplifting, rallying note. The final poems hint at happiness in a new - albeit unexpected - way of life, by means of real change which does not involve hiding away, escaping, or conforming to society’s expectations. Ultimately, Helen Anderson’s message is one of hope that trauma need not be the end, but can become a bridge towards growth and to living on your own terms.
About the Poets:
Helen Anderson writes in a small town/large village on the North East coast of England. She has an MA in Creative Writing from Teesside University. Author of 'Piece by Piece: Remembering Georgina: A Mother's Memoir' (Slipway) and a poetry chapbook 'Way Out' (The Black Light Engine Room), her work has been published in a number of literary magazines and anthologies. As a bereaved parent and a widow, Helen is fascinated by the therapeutic potential of words. Although much of her poetry and prose explores serious themes, Helen loves to surprise people with dashes of dry humour, both on the page and in ‘real life’.
Janet Philo started writing in 2015 at a workshop on Redcar seafront. That’s where she met Helen who has been a friend and trusted mentor ever since. Helen taught her how to stand in front of a mic and she’s been in love with performance poetry ever since. Janet is a proud member of Saltburn Writers and a recent recruit to Ashbourne Writers.
Janet has two published pamphlets: Under-hedge Dapple, (Three Drops Press 2016) and ‘Cheap Fish for Kings’ (Black Light Engine Room Press March 2020). She has work in anthologies for both adults and children, including ‘I Bet I Can Make You Laugh’ by Joshua Siegal and Friends. (Bloomsbury Education 2018) and Midnight Feasts (an anthology of food poems, collected by A.F. Harrold’ (Bloomsbury Education 2019)
You can find her on Soundcloud as, Under-hedge Poet https://soundcloud.com/user-839667062
Julie Easley (she/her) is a widely published working-class poet and visual artist from Saltburn. She writes poetry of protest and solidarity, is a member of Tees Women Poets, an inclusive feminist and Trans ally.