QUIET PLEASE

If you are a City fan
Keep silent if you can
As you stand at Old Trafford
As silence falls in accord
Please don’t speak out
Please don’t scream or shout
Acknowledge the silence
For those who lived once
Don’t think about the “Babes”
Cold and dead in the carnage
If hatred in your heart and head
Stops you honouring United’s dead
Give your silence as a gift
In remembrance of Frank Swift

GIRL WITH A PEARL EARRING

With exquisite touch
His brush added lustre
To the pearl
Endowing it with life
As it adorned the virgins ear
The depth of its splendour
Holds the watcher transfixed
With its ivory hue
Contrasting with the maidens flesh
Her milky complexion
Lit from the window
Her half open silent lips
Speaking to the soul
Her simple beauty
Shining from the canvas
How Vermeer the master
Captured that moment in Delft
And how the girl with a pearl earring
Captures everyone who sees her

ON THE BLACK LAKE

John, in his boat one grey autumn day
Bobbing on the lakes black water
His heart gripped by blackness
As he sobbed for the loss of his daughter

His blood ran cold through his veins
As he stared at the dark water there
Water that would welcome him
And end a life filled with despair

John’s life was as empty as his heart
Now his dear little girl was gone
That sweet yellow haired angel
Without her he just couldn’t go on

Then calmness came upon the water
And he became suddenly aware
He was no longer alone in his boat
As he stared at the dark water there

The boat no longer bobbed on the lake
As he turned to look behind him
He saw God sitting in the stern
And on the shore stood two Seraphim

God sat with smiling countenance
His hair white as artic snow
His soft eyes just radiated love
And he emitted a warming glow

John stood silent before his god
As the boat drifted towards the shore
And the black despair which gripped him
Left his body through every pore

Then Gods eyes looked toward the land
To where his brace of angels stood
And John was moved to do the same
And in that instant he understood

For stood between the angels
Was his sweet yellow haired girl
Her broken body once more whole
And a hallow sat above her curls

Though the heavenly father never spoke
John understood the meaning clear
His darling child made Cherubim was safe
And his time was not yet near

Then singing the songs of paradise
The Seraphim both ascended high
While his darling girl waved to him
And ascended herself into the sky

John turned towards the stern
As the boat bobbed on the lake again
But saw only an empty space
The king had returned to his domain

John, in his boat that grey autumn day
Bobbing on the lakes black water
Now felt at peace with himself
Though he still grieved for his darling daughter

The waters were not so black any more
And love displaced despair in his heart
Though he would always miss his angel
He knew they would not always be apart

SWEET MYSTERY

For Valentines Day
My husband, so sweet
Bought hand made chocolates
For me as a treat
In a flower covered box
Came the delicious confection
But I am at a loss to answer
A most curious question
How can two pounds of chocs
So delicious on the lips
Manage in just one night
To put 5lbs on my hips

MENOPAUSE FOR THOUGHT

There is a natural order in life
There are rules to be understood
For example bearing children
There is a time limit on motherhood
The term “child bearing years”
Was coined for a very simple reason
So that everything in life
Can have its time and season
A Woman over fifty is ill equipped
To show a baby proper care
As she would put the baby down
And then forget where

I’D DO ANYTHING

“I’d do anything” how apt a title
A motto for the wannabee
A catch phrase for the starstruck
And all those lacking dignity

I’D DO ANYTHING, REPRISE

Just another in a long line
Of talent shows from hell
Just another TV concept
Ringing out its death knell

But how clever is the Lord
To have the dear old BBC
Foot the bill for the auditions
Out of the TV license fee

Then the members of the public
Who vote as they view
Get to Pay via the phone-ins
For the shows advertising too