Close Up
Walking on a sun sharp afternoon
a squally shower surprised me
and I laughing,
ran and found shelter under a tree
by the laneside.
Slow minutes passed as long streaks of wet
soaked the grass and patched the dusty track
with puddles,
Whilst I stayed dry
under the thick canopy
cheating the rain.
Today, on this soft December day
I walked under the trees
unaware that a breeze
was sneaking along sleeping branches,
prodding precocious drops
until, losing their balance,
they tumbled and smashed on my bright blue jacket
and woolly hat.
So it seems my summer shower
Had only been playing hide and seek
And now it splashed my face and shouted
“found you!”
And won the game.
And smiling, with the drops drying on my face
I strode on into the mist where
The signpost pointed nobody to nowhere
on the moorland track.
I knew the land that surrounded me,
The bulk of Boulsworth to my right
The ridge of Pendle to my left
But nothing and no-one rose out of the grey
To share my day,
So in the quiet I resolved to see the world reflected in a raindrop
And be grateful for the things closest to me
Which can be forgotten when I look at distant views.
Wendy Bowers
30.12.18
Walking on a sun sharp afternoon
a squally shower surprised me
and I laughing,
ran and found shelter under a tree
by the laneside.
Slow minutes passed as long streaks of wet
soaked the grass and patched the dusty track
with puddles,
Whilst I stayed dry
under the thick canopy
cheating the rain.
Today, on this soft December day
I walked under the trees
unaware that a breeze
was sneaking along sleeping branches,
prodding precocious drops
until, losing their balance,
they tumbled and smashed on my bright blue jacket
and woolly hat.
So it seems my summer shower
Had only been playing hide and seek
And now it splashed my face and shouted
“found you!”
And won the game.
And smiling, with the drops drying on my face
I strode on into the mist where
The signpost pointed nobody to nowhere
on the moorland track.
I knew the land that surrounded me,
The bulk of Boulsworth to my right
The ridge of Pendle to my left
But nothing and no-one rose out of the grey
To share my day,
So in the quiet I resolved to see the world reflected in a raindrop
And be grateful for the things closest to me
Which can be forgotten when I look at distant views.
Wendy Bowers
30.12.18