When the pen takes control.

What once we knew as

“Wet behind the ears,” becomes

Has “the bloom of youth.“

Eradicate weeds

With a deadly orange dust

Think not of life’s cost

When my friends and I went into the ruins

That days homework we were doing

The teacher had told the class to find

If the builders had left anything behind

But we only found things left by lovers wooing

Deep within dark caves

Each slow drip immortalised

Frozen in the drop

It feels like it was only yesterday

When all the children used to dance and play

Under the old knarled chestnut tree

With the sounds of laughter and shrieks of glee

And now all the players I knew have gone

But the tree, like my memories, lingers on

Wildfires scorch the earth

Acrid clouds shade sunlit skies

Craving Winter rains

Because we lived so far away

We took a school bus every day

We could never be late

The driver wouldn’t wait

And we knew what our parents would say

A dark storm seething

In a tangled labyrinth

Troubled mind seeks calm

You all know me, my name is Bobby

Since lockdown started I’ve tried new hobbies

I’ve bought brushes, paints and paper

For watercolour painting but what a caper,

Got a short wave radio a C B too

Yet I still listen to Radio Two

Brand new camera, flash gun and lenses

Even got infrared to see what that senses,

A taste for astronomy entered my head

But I found I’d rather be tucked up in bed

So I took up my trusty pen and pad

If I can get more writing done, then I’ll be glad.