Katrina Naomi – The Best View in England

#Arvon50
Arvon is 50 this year and to celebrate we have collected the stories of writers far and wide who have a tale to tell about Arvon. The collection will be published in our anniversary booklet and featured on our blog throughout the year. The following poem is by Katrina Naomi and was written at The Hurst. 
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The Best View in England

that’s what she said. Of course,
I begin to find fault: a shrub partly obscures the view,
there’s a glint of car windows and,
if I listen hard enough, I sense the thrum of traffic.
I’ll admit the colours are strong,
mid-summer: yellows of wheat-fields,
oaky greens, and the hills’ hazed blue.
A single cloud hovers off-centre, elders waft,
sheep bleat, swallows jaunt. Yes, it’s lovely.
But the Best View?
                               It’s like someone telling you
their top three films. You’ll disagree. Instantly.
Plus, there isn’t a river, the valley could be deeper,
the blue, bluer.
                          Had she not said a thing,
I’d have sat here, quietly smug,
feeling I’d discovered this place,
would have gone home, told everyone
I’d found the Best View in England.

-Katrina Naomi

(First published in The Spectator)