A Warty old witch would feel sick
Whenever she rode her broomstick
The twisting and turning
Made her stomach start churning
So she made sure her journey was quick!
There was an old werewolf called June
Who could not carry a tune
She was croaky and hoarse
Which affected of course
Her performance when she howled at the moon!
I wrote this for those we wish to remember…
He wanted to serve his country
And do his duty as a man
He signed up for the Army
Just as soon as the war began
He just had his nineteenth birthday
And was at the start of his adult life
He had found the perfect woman
That was going to be his wife
She asked him not to leave her
And cried so many tears
He tried to reassure her
To cast aside her fears
The day for him to leave came
She waved as he boarded the train
Little did she know then
She would never see him again
He met with fellow soldiers
Who seemed like decent blokes
They passed the journey laughing
And telling dirty jokes.
The smiles soon left their faces
When they were marched across the mud
And taken to huge trenches
That stank of rotting flesh and blood.
These would be his home now
Along with many other men
He would know no creature comforts
Nor would he see home again
The weather was appalling
His clothes were sopping wet
The food supplies were dwindling
Sometimes stale bread was all he ate.
There were rats all running rampant
He picked lice out of his hair
The constant sound of gunfire
Was almost more than he could bear
Death was all around him
So many friends were shot
His body was wracked with sores now
And his foot had begun to rot.
He had wanted to make a difference
And fight for what he believed
But this never-ending battle
Was worse than he conceived
It was his turn to be lookout
As so many had before
He was weary and dejected
From this bloody, grisly war
He thought about his fiancée
The girl he’d left at home
Tears threatened to engulf him
He felt so desperate and alone
He didn’t feel the bullet
As it pierced right through his brain
His body still and lifeless
His blood, crimson in the rain
*****
I honour all those soldiers
Who lost their lives and died
We indeed will remember them
As we wear our poppies with pride
Today’s video poem is about music; how it can transform your mood and transport you to another place and time.
If you enjoyed those poems, and have time for a cuppa then you might like to check out my book Rhymes of the Times. It has many more poems like this and is perfect for dipping in and out of when you fancy a little pick-me-up.
Click here to be taken to my author page where you can purchase the book.
Linda’s prompt word for this week’s Stream of Consciousness post is season. We can use it however we wish (even adding a suffix to it) and get bonus points for starting and ending with a season or seasoning. Oh, and a picture gets even more bonus points!
Autumn is well and truly settling in we have had all kinds of weather, ranging from unseasonably warm days and days like today which are cold and blustery. (I think storm Brian is popping in and out just to keep us on our toes)!
I feel that every season has something to offer. Autumn with its beautiful reds and golds, crisp mornings and chilly evenings. Of course, there is also Halloween with the kids dressing up and houses decorated in all sorts of spooky ways. Then it is Guy Fawkes night and the sky will be lit up in all kinds of colours as fireworks whizz and pop into life. Hopefully, the skies will be clear so that people can enjoy them.
Winter is burrowing in time! Wrapped in a blanket on the settee with fleecy pyjamas and thick socks, then getting then having a hot flush! Dark nights and mornings mean wanting to stay in bed where it is warm and cosy. Hearty, filling meals like stews, and casseroles, stodgy puddings, crumbles and custard, and large mugs of hot chocolate or milky coffee. Ahhhhh, I can dream of all those delicious calories waiting to be consumed! If we are lucky (or unlucky if you have to drive in it), we might even get a bit of snow. Such fun for the kids as inevitably, the schools will shut down, there will be chaos on the roads and the trains will not be able to cope with ‘the wrong kind of snow.’
Spring is always so welcome to me, the lighter evenings, warmer weather that is not sweltering, just pleasant. The flowers poking their heads up above ground to see what is going on, bluebells in the woods, blossom on the trees, birds singing, digging out the shorts and t-shirts only for it to suddenly turn arctic!
Lastly, the beautiful summer, blue skies, hot sunshine, beaches, barbecues and loads of daylight. Of course, it also means, suntan lotion, insect bites, dragging the fan out of the loft, chucking the duvet off the bed, and moaning about the heat!
Yes, each one has something to offer, but being British, I also love to moan about the seasons!
You may remember some time ago I wrote about my mum’s attitude that ‘A little bit of dirt never killed anybody’. This was in regards to her cavalier disregard for sell-by dates.kitchen cleanliness and other such pleasantries!
To add to this, I remember only having a bath once a week (on a Sunday night fresh for school on Monday), and it was either in with my younger sister, or somebody else’s second-hand water! We didn’t think anything of it really at that time, as we still washed, just didn’t bathe!
Of course, becoming teenagers was a whole new ballgame. We were never out of the bathroom! Mum would be vexed that we would only wear our clothes once and then chuck them in the wash. Apart from underwear, she was convinced that our clothes still had another day or two left in them before they got dirty enough to warrant washing.
She thought we were crazy washing our hair every day as well, telling us that it ‘would wash all the goodness out of it’. We still did it anyway, and got through a job lot of shampoo and conditioner along the way.
According to a survey of 2021 women commissioned by Flint + Flint (A skin care company) four out of five women still don’t bother to shower every day, and in fact one-third will go for three days without washing at all. Phewwwww, I bet things get a bit whiffy around the nethers. How gross!
Like most women I know, I bathe every day, and many times more often than that. I would never dream of going to work without first bathing, which is one of the reasons I get up so early. In my opinion, it is not just about personal pride, but consideration for others as well. I have to get pretty close to my patients, and I am sure they would not want to be a couple of inches from an unwashed armpit – or worse!
By the same token,when I worked in a hospital, we would wash our patients every day, for their self-respect and dignity as well as the obvious infection control measures. Most of us actually feel better when we are clean, with washed hair and fresh clothes.
I am not averse to a bit of dirt either. Kids like to play in the mud and get filthy, as it is so much fun. I think if we obsessively clean everything to within an inch of its life, then we run the risk of not building up any resistance, and catching everything going! It is about balance and common sense.
Are we too clean or should we leave it 3 days between washes?
Ron’s turn this week for his and Colleen’s Writer’s Quote Challenge. He has given us ‘miracle’ to use as our prompt word, and I have found the perfect quote to go with it!
“Just because you can explain it doesn’t mean it’s not still a miracle.”
– Terry Pratchett
The cry of a newborn baby
As he takes his first gulp of air
Despite being born at 28 weeks
He’ll survive with lots of care
The patient who has cancer
Given six months to survive
Yet five years on and still going strong
So happy to be alive
The changing of the seasons
Each one of them delights
With the freezing winter mornings
And the balmy summer nights
The planets in the night sky
Even going to the moon
Things that were once thought impossible
Will be reality soon
Miracles are all around us
From the moment of our birth
We just need to take time to notice
The beauty and wonder of this earth
It is Colleen’s turn again this week for hers and Ronovan’s Writer’s Quote on Wednesday Challenge. She has given us ‘memories’ as our prompt word. I have found the perfect quote to base my poem on this week:
Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory.
– Dr Seuss
I remember going to my Nan’s house
When I was very small
Her and my aunty were so strict
I would hardly talk at all!
Yet she would bring us cups of cocoa
and lay on lots of food
But I was on my best behaviour
It wouldn’t do to be rude!
Walking around the harbour
Days spent on the beach
Those carefree days of childhood
That are so now far out of reach.
Long and nauseous coach rides,
Those made me feel so bad
But in the end were worth it
As I got to see my Dad!
Childhood friends and fun times
Muddy and soaking wet
Giggling with my girlfriends
Over a gorgeous boy I’d met!
My first job in the café
The worst waitress that ever was
Trying to avoid the groping hands
Of my rather randy boss!
Married for the first time-
Then the second, now number three
Giving birth to a daughter
Spending time with family
Finally passing my driving test
Life is full of moments
that have meant so much to me
And they are always with me
As my precious memories.
It is Ronovan’s turn this week to give us the prompt word for his and Colleen’s Writer’s Quote Wednesday Challenge and he has come up with ‘happiness.’ This quote says it all really; sometimes we are looking so hard for something, we don’t realise that it is there right under our noses!
Some of us might find happiness if we quit struggling so desperately for it!
– William Feather.
When the sun is shining
and there’s a gentle, cooling breeze
When the birds are singing
And playing in the trees.
When the flowers are blooming
With all their vibrant hues
When I have a day off work
And can get an extra-long snooze!
When I bump into an old friend
I haven’t seen for a while
When my great-niece Molly
Gives me a gummy smile
When I get to spend time
With all my family
When my husband cooks me
My favourite meal for tea!
When someone says ‘thank you’
As they know, you did your best
When I had my daughter
For that, I am truly blessed.
All these little pleasures
Are not that far away
They are things that make me happy
And brighten up my day.
Ronovan and Colleen have given us ‘freedom’ for our prompt this week in the Writer’s Quote Writing Challenge. I have found a wonderful quote below that certainly sums up my thoughts on ‘freedom.’
Freedom is not worth having if it does not include the freedom to make mistakes.
– Mahatma Gandhi
Freedom to choose what colour
I want my hair to be
Freedom to wear what clothes I like
For my personality!
Freedom to drive my car around
Wherever I want to go
Freedom to ring my friends up
When I’m feeling low
Freedom to go out to work
And earn my own money
Freedom to laugh freely
If I find something funny!
Freedom to go swimming
On a hot and sunny day
Freedom with the words I use
In what I write or say.
Freedom with the food I eat
Or if I choose to drink
Freedom to marry whom I want
Who cares what others think?
Freedom with sexuality
Whether straight or gay
Girl, boy, or transgender
I can choose to live my way!
Freedom to make mistakes
To learn and then move on
Freedom to teach others
On where we got it wrong!
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