That warm patch of earth under the damsons
Where nothing grew but children’s feet prints
Reached high for the odd black fruit showing
Sqealched between fingers the stalk snapped
And a mouth opened to taste the sweet wines.


Love Mary

The rustling of girls in nylon underskirts
And shoe buckle in bejewelled highlights
With presents so wrapped and tied bows
For bolero in angora to complete the show.

Love Mary x

After sixty years have past,
I feel that same ache beneath my heart
As I did as a child of five
It slept by me in the dark
Searched for in the day
The wanting of return for loss
Which translates but does not go
Remains a relentless longing.

Love Mary **

Treasures layed out on a bed
On a rainy day staying indoors
Opening a lidded Formica box
Faceted stones glinted before.

From broaches now broken, undone
Sorted into colours, spectrum through
Golden backed pyramids of glass
All spread out in straight rows.

Love Mary x

Here I stand in the row
Waiting to get my prize
The needlework certificate
I choose a chess set
Not to play chess
But because I liked
Shapes .

They would be my family
Mum and dad ,
Prefects at school
Brothers and sisters
An unusual menagerie
Of souls
On a black and white board.


Love Mary x

The trees were back to front
On the wrong side of the shade
Unbalanced in the garden
Reminded her of toytown
Where there was Noddy.

And those yellow bricks
Where she slid her fingers
Smooth arcs of space
To hide under
With big rabbit.


Love Mary x

She fell out of heaven
Like a Bottichelli angel
With a smile as appealing
As any Fragonard or
Boucher cherub.

Gliding across the floor
on padded feet
She decides to smile at all .

Love Grandma xxxx

I went with a numbness, and sense of doubt
Dropped at the doors of strangers
But pleased to have been asked.
We all gave our presents to the birthday child
Watching the discarded paper fall and the pile
Fill out the large cushioned arm chair.

Not coming from wealth my present simple style
But always liked, it appeared, much as any other;
Coats taken and placed upstairs.
A quick glance at the other children’s party attire
Mine often a cream jumper and tartan pleated skirt,
Brown leather Clark’s sandels, sensible.

The chocolate game was my favourite
Eating with knife and fork,
As many pieces as able, real fooling about.
Then there was musical chairs that
Put me in despair, as some one always out
And lots of standing about along the wall.

Not very good at general knowledge so forfeits
Left me in tears.
But Oh! for pass the parcel
Always fun had here.
Then to the tea table we went
With eyes bigger than tummies.

All that blamange and strawberry jelly
Sparkly fairy cakes with silver *****
Discarded plates of uneaten sandwiches
Crusts scattering the floor, dropped,
Lastly, milk chocolate fingers galore
And a tiny decorated craker to take home.

The End

Love Mary