Beyond both Alnmouth and the Aln,
Above a boat-filled estuary,
A cross stands on a mound or dune
Like a cathedral drowned in sand,
A small hill for a Calvary
Up which a figure in the sun
Climbs to the top, then kneels in prayer,
As if she were illusory,
A pilgrim from an earlier age
Or apparition on a screen,
Dressed in the habit of a nun.
But kneeling there she joins her hands,
Bows to the cross to meditate,
Then wanders to the water’s edge,
Takes off her shoes and cools her feet
Where North Sea meets Northumberland.
And we that evening walk around
The saltmarsh, as the sun goes down,
To find the ruins of a shrine
With Saxon carvings on the arch.
We take a sandpath up the mound
To touch the upright of the cross
And read the letters round the base:
St Cuthbert A.D. and a date,
A founding father of the church
Whose landfall it commemorates
In silent stone above a beach.
Above the beach in silent stone,
The halo of a harvest moon
Illuminates the planet’s rim
And worshipping the setting sun
The tidal waters seem to flame.
St Cuthbert's Cross stands on a hill by the River Aln on the Northumberland coast. It is said to mark the spot where, in the late 7th century AD, St Cuthbert agreed to become Bishop of Lindisfarne.
Do we hear echoes of another poem about faith and coast - the great Dover Beach?
You can find the poetry of Duncan Forbes on Amazon:
St Cuthbert's Cross looking over the River Aln to Almouth in Northumberland