The Poetry Marathon

Season of the Virus

Hidden, locked down, safe indoors,
We wait.

We wait and wait,
Hidden and safe,
Against the creeping virus.

No cure, no vaccine
Unknown illness
Takes it toll
On millions.

Millions infected, like a horror film
An invisible enemy
With no weapons available.
Except one.
Stay at home, stay alone.

We wait, unsure, unknowing.
A new normal is close.
Wash your hands and wear a mask.
Better still – stay at home.
Life slows, we live,
One day at a time.

An Ideal Day

Lazy, sound of silence
Maybe the song of birds outside,
Safe and cozy covers surrounding us,
As we smile at the lack of anywhere to be.

Later, immersing ourselves in stories, laughter,
Comforting cups of tea and sandwiches,
Curled up together
As we listen to pitter-pattering raindrops outside.

Warmth holds us close
As we hold each other,
Content and relaxed
On a lazy, perfect day.

The Day it Rained Umbrellas

One day the sky opened,
And poured down umbrellas.
No rain in which to use them,
Just thousands of umbrellas.
Different colours, different sizes,
All styles and shapes and shades.

They hurdled down towards us,
Handles first, fully open,
Before suddenly slowing
And letting a gentle breeze guide them down,
Into waiting hands, one per person,
Choosing their new owners one by one.

People reached out and found
Their favourite colour waiting,
Or an animal shape,
Patterns, stripes, spots,
Handles of wood or plastic or metal,
Just what they would have chosen.

Small girls had pink umbrellas with unicorns on,
Disney princesses and kittens,
Or maybe a Star Wars figure,
Space rockets or spiderwebs.
Men in suits reached for rainbow stripes,
Women for bold red or rich purple.

The day the umbrellas rained down,
Magically, mysteriously.
We reached out and held on,
As the day saw not a drop of rain
But an outpouring of love
And understanding.

A Letter

I hope this letter finds you well,
If you can be well – or not, where you now are.
And where is that? I wish you could say.
Or tell me anything really.

If I could see you once more,
I’d hug you tight and full of love,
Tell you I have a good life,
A husband, friends, a job.

I’d like to wander memory lane with you,
One last time.
Remember your garden,
How you would teach us the names of all the plants?

Before heading inside for lunch
And The Archers on the radio,
Games and books,
Cartoons on the TV.

Quiet, easy days in school holidays,
So many years ago.
I’m all grown-up now,
And you are long gone.

But never forgotten.

The Visitor

On my morning walk
Around the garden,
During lockdown as I avoid
The outside world,
He enters in –
A black, feline visitor.

Bravely, he watches me
Creeping closer as I count steps,
Check my fitbit,
Jog on the spot,
And smile
At bright green eyes.

He stalks a prey of cut-down bamboo,
Leafs floating on the breeze,
And butterflies circling flowers,
Pounces and plays,
Before finding a spot of sun
And stretching out to rest.

Recipe for Ten Years

For ten years of marriage,
Days not always happy,
But always together,
Take me, take you,
A world built together.

Mix in a love of books,
Sci fi and music,
Pet names, shared jokes,
Laughing so hard I cry,
As you tickle me relentlessly.

Add those quiet moments
Sharing silence, never alone,
With cold winter mornings
Before an open fire,
And cooking together in own kitchen.

Ten years goes so fast,
Hold it close, precious,
Heat it gently, stir in
A little adventure,
Northern Lights and helicopter trips.

Serve up to two so close,
Holding hands every day,
Slow, lazy mornings
With slow, lazy kisses,
Which never get old.

Dee

Dee she was, never Doris.
Rarely mum or grandma.
Just Dee – no just about her.
Short, but not a risk you would overlook her.
Glamorous and strong, fiery and fierce,
Right up to the age of 96.

Family by blood or not,
Once in you stayed,
But you had better behave,
No fools suffered here,
Her memory almost as long
As her rich, full life.

A teacher always,
Science a passion,
Art, music, food she loved,
But books her weapon of choice –
To read, to teach, and then
To publish.

Headstrong to the end,
Centre of any room.
Her presence larger than she was,
She would receive visitors majestically –
When appearing with gifts
Of coffee, whisky, cake.

Her long reign now over,
A gap in our hearts and life,
For Doris, Dee,
Sister, wife, mother, aunt,
Grandmother, great-grandmother,
Great aunt.

Bare Feet

A new decree was announced today.
Shoes were no longer allowed.
Bare feet only, or face a large fine,
For this is the rule of the land.

People need to feel the earth, the new government proclaimed,
The brush of a wind at their heels,
And the slickness of grass between toes.
The kiss of the sun on backs of ankles.

We would be more grounded,
More mindful, moving with care.
With bare feet its harder to walk
Over anyone smaller than you.

Bare feet only,
And you slow to a stroll
Watching where you tread,
Noticing it all.

Ten

1: Meeting

We met over ten years ago,
Very different people,
Not knowing this was the beginning
Of our greatest journey.
We met, and then, we had to leave
But too late
A die had been cast,
Our lives now entwined.

2: The First Year

We have been a pair now
For almost 10 years,
Starting as two separate people,
Slowly edging together,
Becoming one married couple.

At first we fought against it,
Used to our independence.
But the call of fate was stronger
And we moved, unknowingly, to its tune.

3: Year Two

Days turned to weeks,
And months to years,
As we spent more time together,
The distance between us now an obstacle,
Rather than a nice distraction
Against going too far, too quickly.

4: Year Three

By now we knew,
This was real,
And so combined our lifes.
One flat, two copies
Of favourite books and CDs.

5: Engagement

On my birthday, you proposed,
High above the earth
As we glided on the London Eye.
Joyful tears with a backdrop of rain.

6: The Big Day (part 1)

Nothing ever goes quite to plan,
And this was some arrangement.
We rearranged the seating thrice,
For everything just right –
Even found the perfect vases
For lilies in purple water.

We wanted something personal,
With poetry and prayers,
And friends and family around us,
In a ceremony we had planned.
A string quartet the final touch
For waltzing down the aisle.

To be the centre of attention
Was a lot of fun,
We felt very loved
And very proud,
As we showed off shiny
New rings.

7: The Big Day (part 2)

Then followed a party,
With some unusual picks
On our wedding music list
And some more classic hits.

With an Jewish dance,
Where I was twirled round and round,
I laughed so hard
When my feet hit the ground.

The food was delicious,
The cake chocolate and rich,
And everyone had fun,
All said and done.

8: Honeymoon

Breath-taking Alaska
On board a luxury cruise-ship.
With just one small problem –
At some point, we had to leave!

9: Afterwards

Is it different, everyone asked,
As we returned to the same flat,
The same jobs, same lives.
Yes, I had to reply,
Unable to stop smiling
At my brand new husband
As I tried the ‘h’ word out,
For the twentieth time that day.

10: Ten

Ten years it’s almost been
Since you entered my life,
Changed it completely,
For the better.
Now I know who I am,
And I am your partner,
Your wife, your equal.
Your soul-mate.

In The Black

In the Black, they say, men can go mad,
And reavers find their meals.
But they can’t stop the signal
However hard they try.
He took them out there,
To the furthest rim,
And there made a home
On the good ship Serenity.

Browncoats all round,
And Big Damn Heroes, too.

No-one could take their sky,
Though many would love to try.
But a preacher with a past,
And a brain-washed dancing girl,
A pilot with plastic dinosaurs
And a grease-smeared mechanic lass
Were his shiny crew.
They would get the signal through.

Out in the black
His first mate is still loyal,
And there’s an ambassador
With beauty untold.
And his coat is still brown,
He’ll fly straight and true,
In a Firefly class
Till the day that he’s passed.