I have a memory of being at Corpus Christi school aged about 6 or 7 when one winter there was a heavy snowfall and we were kept at school until a parent came to collect us. Must have been a challenge as nobody had phones in those days. After a long wait Dad eventually turned up with Wellingtons for us all and we had great fun following in the huge foot prints he left in the deep snow as we trudged to the bus stop.

FOOT PRINTS

Childhood memory, snow falls heavy

School closed early while we wait

Dad turns up with our wellies

Leads us laughing through school gate

Snow’s so deep we skip our lessons

Dad says follow where I’ve been

Our wellies plunge in his impressions

Heaviest snow we’ve ever seen

Dad’s footprints are oh so deep!

For us, thigh high, in drifting snow

We giant-step so we may keep

Apace with Dad, and home we go

Steps through life leave impressions

Way-marked points of where we’ve been

Words I write attempt expression

Of the life I’ve lived and seen

I leave a trail for you to follow

For when I’m gone and you remain

It’s not meant to cause you sorrow

But might help to ease the pain

Life is finite that we know

Each must choose their route with care

The prints you leave will serve to show

The path you chose, the journey there

It doesn’t matter where you travel

It’s the journey that’s the key

Let your trail of love unravel

For those who follow; help them see

So leave your footprints loud and clear

Impressions of the life you’ve led

A gift for those that you hold dear

So they may follow in your tread

We followed Dad until we grew,

Each found a path we call our own;

But in his snow-deep steps we knew:

We needed Dad to guide us home

8th August 2025

A MOMENT IN TIME

A moment in time is all we have

Either this timeless instant

Or our life span measured

Against the cosmic clock

A brief flash of luminescence

As a spark of vitality flashes

Before the lights go out

Pause

In this instant of timelessness

Eternity can be glimpsed

Inhale

Hold that thought for a second

As you hold your breath

And perceive the universe within you

Exhale

Repeat

Live

Breathe

Love

Breathe

Die

Breathe?

Reincarnate?

CHILLING

Chilling in the garden

Day is soft with sun

Gentle breeze is wafting

Steroids on the run

Chemo does it work

Buying me some time

Chilling in the garden

Life can be sublime

Think not of the future

Relax and live the moment

Be at one with nature

A medicine most potent

Chilling the garden

Grateful for this day

Sitting in the sunshine

There’s nothing more to say