Over one hundred years on. Life is Precious.

I'm growing old, but as a young man, you died.
Each November the eleventh, I wear a poppy, with pride.
For I can still see the moon, golden sunshine and showers.
Whilst you never survived, to spend precious hours.

Future plans were denied you, didn't see your children play.
You never woke to their giggles, at the break of each day.
See them jump on a swing,  blow bubbles in the air - or do all the mad things that only kids dare!

You missed all the trials of seeing them grow, the excitement of Christmas -  their first pantomime show.
Opening small presents, with joy in their eyes.
Unaware of their mother, softly stifling her cries.

She wept for her soldier, who didn't return,  that pain in her heart would continually burn.
A wedding ring to cherish, a photo or two.
She kept his memory, for her children, it's all she could do.

So when I look back at my life, the good and the bad.
I'm thankful I survived, though sometimes feel sad.
For a hundred years have pased, since your great sacrifice.
But we still have not learned, how precious is LIFE.

Ann Wilson  November 3rd 2018.

WELCOME, THE AUTUMN

A farewell from the Summer.
as Autumn takes the stage.
Pretty blooms are fading fast,
spent annuals start to age.

A prelude to the Winter,
pleasant breeze before the chill.
With colours ever changing,
Autumn's promise will fulfil.

Late asters in their element,
vibrant dahlias, grasses tall;
adding beauty to the garden
as the gilded leaves now fall.

I watch them softly shedding
as they greet the waiting earth.
Knowing nature will recycle.
Nature is rebirth.

Reflections in the Night Garden.

A poem in progress.

I love the serenity of the dark, sensual night

An indigo sky - a full moon so bright

A myriad of stars twinkling up above,

Reminds me of the past and the angst of lost love.

One special love - I thought we'd never be parted - 

My world shattered in pieces
and left me broken hearted.

But time heals pain, a cliche, I know.

As the years roll on, you have to let it go.

Summer nights, in the garden, I reflect on it all.

Wondering why, it was so easy to fall.

But so obvious looking back,
with an amber moon above.

The night time allure
was ideal for young love.

Now I just admire the beauty of the night time display.

Happy to be here still,
I've come a long way.

Intoxicating scents from flowers all around.

Brushing past me in the darkness, moths barely make a sound.

The gentle colour changes, from a pretty solar light.

Fascinate them so, on their late evening flight.

In the dark trees above
I hear the rustling of the leaves.

It fires imagination, of the stories I might weave.

Such as witches on their broomsticks
With black cats by their side.

In the coolest, blackest sky
Their favoured territory -  they ride.

The night time garden never ceases to amaze.

A whole new world appears,
So very different from the days.

Sentimental Summers.

Dedicated to my Dad.

How I loved the Summer
Jewel-like flowers and lush green trees.
A walk along the countryside
As I ambled at my ease.

Butterflies -  a- darting
From a myriad of flowers.
How I loved to watch them all,
as I whiled away the hours.

Ripe strawberries with a tin of cream
Fresh apples, pears and plums
Delicious crumbles to be made.
All would satisfy our tums!

My favourite place is in the garden,
at this special time of year
It reminds me of my father,
whose memory I hold dear

He grew so many vegetables
and lovely flowers by the score.
His dahlias and roses
are the plants I still adore.

With affection I remember,
Our rose garden at the side.
It's probably a driveway now,
Where once was Father's pride.

Then, summers seemed so magical
Playing out in meadows green.
Now houses stand in rows
And our childhood -  just a dream.

Time is....

Another poem on the subject of time.

It's running out, it's wasted.
It's precious, so they say.
It's musical, it's happy
and it rules our every day.

It's waiting, it's forgiving.
It passes quickly, so they say.
It's looking forward, looking backward
and will never go away.

It's sadness and it's healing.
It's always marching on, they say.
It's motivation, it's in the future,
of a kinder world, a better way.

MISSING YOU

This poem has been published in an anthology by Forward Press. ANIMAL ANTICS 2008 under my former name Potkins.



MISSING YOU



In memory of Shannon April 11th 2007


...

I miss your head upon my lap,
I miss your grunts and groans.
I miss your bark, I miss your whine.
Oh, how I miss your doggy moans.


I miss seeing you in the mornings,
I miss your presence in the night.
I miss your little tufts of hair.
I miss you so, it isn't right.


I miss your lovely greeting,
I miss you treading on my feet.
I miss these little things so much
And I miss, watching you eat.


I miss seeing you in the garden,
I miss the way you'd run and play.
I miss you, when I'm home from work.
Oh, how I miss you every day.

Holiday

We had a great holiday in Weston -super- Mare. The New Ocean Hotel is very nice, although our room was a tad small and if I was any bigger,  I would have had a job to squeeze past the end of the bed to reach the kettle, in order to make a cuppa!

The meals were really nice, especially the buffet style breakfasts with a good selection of food that you could pick and choose. Many of the staff were eastern europeans, lovely people and very helpful.

Our 2 trips out were lovely as the weather stayed warm, though a bit windy, but often the way in coastal areas.
We had a few hours in Burnham-on -Sea, on Tuesday, quite a quaint place, not too commercialized. A lovely sea front and a selection of gift shops, plus a handy B&M that I couldn't resist visiting. I bought a solar "mooning" gnome, very tasteful!!  It works.

We couldn't leave without indulging in substantial ice creams with added clotted cream - sheer bliss and such a hit to the taste buds.

On the Thursday we went to the UK's smallest city of Wells and visited the beautiful cathedral and although I'm an atheist, I appreciated the gothic architecture, its history and stunning stained glass windows. We had a homemade buttered scone and tea in the cafe. Very nice.

We had an hour or so in Wells, which had to include a quick visit to Ladbrokes - we didn't see a Betfred there. The young lady working in Ladbrokes lived in the village of Street where we were going next and was very informative, as to its charm.

Clark's retail outlet in Street was the highlight of my week and even Paul, who normally hates shopping, had to admit it was nice there. It was built on the site of the old Clark's shoe factory. Loads of great discount outlets, including Gap, French Connection, M&S and many more. Tried a top on in FC, but looked like a whale in it, so went to M&S and bought a lovely royal blue top for £15 and actually got into a 14 as the 16 was voluminous! A complete fluke of course. Paul got some new jogging bottoms.

We had a real Cornish pastie between us,  they were huge, in one of the lovely cafès. The whole place is beautifully set out with everything to hand - including very clean loos - well worth a visit if you're visiting Somerset ( not just for the loos) though loos are very important to the over 70s!

The Grand Pier in Weston that we visited on Wednesday,  was rather disappointing, as it was full of noisy slot machines and not much else - what a waste of a great space. Hopefully they have  shows there later this month.

We had a go on a machine and put in a couple of quid, not realizing it only spewed out tickets and no cash prizes.

After redeeming them, we got 2 pkts of love hearts and a lolly!!  Big deal.

A redeeming feature was The Tiffany Tearooms at the end of the pier where we had a lovely warm, fresh homemade scone with clotted cream and jam. All  washed down with tea, loose leaf variety, with a strainer - there's posh!

One of the great highlights of our holiday, was that our particular coach party had free drinks every night between 6 and 10 pm. I'm not a big drinker, but got a few bacardi and diet cokes in!  What more could you want on a holiday?

We had entertainment most nights, mostly good, one not so good, but hey, they have to make a living - and we weren't expecting Tom Jones or any other top acts and after a few bevvies, funnily enough, they all sounded great!

Sadly, the five lovely days were soon over and back home again. Here's to the next time...