there was a little mouse a little robin hood
robbing from the rich and giving to the good
with his little bow and his funny suit
robbing from the rich he would took there loot
with the naughty sheriff always on his trail
trying to catch the mouse and send him straight to jail
hiding in the forest hiding out of sight
coming out again when the time was right
people they all loved him to them he was a king
money he would give them and happiness would bring
robbing from the rich with a bounty on his head
didnt matter how they caught either live or dead
but they never caught him he always got away
the legend of this hero is still there to this day

Faded snapshots through time
Where each moment was real
And the world was all mine
Straight and strong was my keel
    
r ~ 28Feb14

Janice said
she wanted to show me
how well she skipped
with her new skip rope

I watched
as her small hands
held the wooden ends
and her arms

circled like windmills
and her feet
lifted from the ground
in an odd dance

the rope going over
and under
over and under
have a go

she said
no it's OK
I said
let me show you

how good I can draw
my new gun
from my holster
I said

tapping
the toy gun
at my side
a brown hat

(an uncle's trilby)
plonked
on my head
she watched me

her red beret
on her head
the lemon dress
I liked her in

the black plimsolls
touching toes
I took out the gun
and spun it

around my finger
like I’d seen
in the Jeff Chandler films
my old man

took me to see
my other hand
spaced at my side
I put the gun back

in the holster
and on the count of
1-2-3
I drew the gun

in the blink
of her lovely blue eyes
as 1-2-3
bad cowboys

(invisible to her)
fell and died
can I have a go?
she asked

sure you can
I said
so undid the belt
and holster and gun

and handed them
to her
to put on
which she did

in clumsy fashion
all fingers and thumbs
once she was ready
(at her own

female pace)
she said
count me in
so I said ok

and counted 1-2-3
and she went
for the gun
and sent it

spinning
through the air
catching sun light
on the silvery parts

as it fell
to the ground
with a clattering
spark flying

cap banging
sound.