One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise.

Reduced

Rosalind Davies

Easy winter option, ideal for layering over your favourite outfits,

regular fit, timeless crew neckline.

The glory of a full-price item

Chosen in the hot bloom of the season

My size, my length.

I take time to choose, plan ahead, create,

Build a look, an image, or someone else’s,

The one I want to lay on me,

The one that speaks loud what I want it to say.

A gift card redeems me and I walk, like a cat, away.

Long sleeves feature subtle fluting at the cuffs for a stylish finish,

a staple for your occasion wardrobe.

Not every occasion has a desirable, describable outfit.

January watches and waits to launch and throw

Its missile attacks on a cratered high street

And I remember the decorum of the time before.

Arms reach and grab.

The crunch of hangers underfoot.

A cruel mixture of trousers and skirts, fighting colours, jumble sale,

Disordered sizes, lying labels, sale stickers skewering helpless synthetics.

I feel the loss.

Rubbing between finger and thumb the fading image of careless success,

I mourn the season of choice and purchase, the easy accumulation,

the beautiful utility of seamless day-to-night.

Boutique has become bric-a-brac.

I battle, eyes sharp for rivals, at the end of line.

Cropped length with belt to cinch you in

sharp, refined silhouette, a contemporary tailored cut.

More from Rosalind Davies ↓

1. @rosssie.d on Instagram

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Mentioned in this episode:

One Poem Only submissions are open.

This round, I’m looking for poems about what remains. What stays with us after we experience change? What survives? What do we yearn to carry forward? Send me the poem you wrote and want the world to hear. Also, if you’d like to read your own poem on the podcast, you can. Submit a clear audio file recorded in a quiet space—no perfect studio recording required. And yes, your poem can have been previously published in a literary magazine, a book, or on social media. Submissions close Thursday, October 29. I’ll respond by Wednesday, November 11. Whether I read your poem or you read it yourself, I’d love to hear what you have to share.

One Poem Only Submissions Form