village verse

shipley 1996

her smile across the table bridged the missing years
and for a fleeting instant the boy and girl appeared

we didn't realise it would cause any talk
when alice and me went for our walks
down church lane to the lambwaths track
that wandered in a circle all the way back
past the council houses and the curtain twitches
across straits bridge over dry ditches
to primrose bank where I stopped for a smoke
laughing and talking because life was a joke.
onto far fosham where during the war mrs kirk
during a normal farming days work
captured a german who'd jumped from his plane
and parachuted down safely in her back lane
only to be greeted with her loaded shot gun
and wisely decided he'd rather not run
and she received a medal straight from the king.
down her cart track rutted and twisting
to marton church where at the manse next door
they'd give you water which the lady would pour
cool and sparkling from a large metal jug
in to the gleaming white pint pot mugs
back to straits bridge over dry ditches
by council houses and curtain twitches
up church lane
home again

we best friends didn't realise it would cause any talk
when alice and me went for long country walks


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shipley 1996

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