From the corner summerhouse set in the wall,
the towering lime trees between the canals –
at the eastern end of the formal garden –
are still leafless, like jet lace work, like nets
disentangling, against the light blue skies
and the white, driven, cumulus clouds of March.
This was a medium-sized business. They made
their money the usual gentry way from rents
plus coal, were typically self-sufficient,
using and selling their managed timber,
were unusually innovative in
hydraulic projects,
HINDSIGHT
A SENTIMENTAL EDUCATION
ON FIRST READING ‘THE GULAG ARCHIPELAGO’
A SENTIMENTAL EDUCATION
BIRTHDAY GIRL UNDER HOUSE ARREST