~

when it happens

it’s not pleasant,

metaphorically a

smack in the face, 

a massive shock 

stopping you in 

your tracks, all

senses numbed and 

you quickly realise 

that nothing will 

ever be the same,

eventually, over time 

new becomes normal

and you begin to see

the reason for change

having sought out 

the pros and dismissed

the cons, however, 

there will be some

quieter times, when 

alone, in the silence

when you just might

grant yourself the

perfidious thought

the the old way just 

may have been better

*

© Graham R Sherwood 03/26

no end of lesson bell, 

no warning siren’s wail,

school books still open

on the proper page, lie

on their desks not yet

packed away,

no time to finish this 

weeks spelling test

no secret messages

passed hand to hand,

no plans made for 

weekend fun and games

no mothers gossip

at the gate

no roof, no walls, 

no hope, no reason 

for it all

*

© Graham R Sherwood 03/26

for the man, there’s an age

a certain age, closer to his 

ending than his beginning,

when he counts the sum

of the things he’s done and 

those things he didn’t do, 

he comes to conclude his life

didn’t amount to much, 

the things he valued, sought 

after, collected, will become 

the fuel of his funeral pyre,

his poor decisions, choices, 

regrets, have formed a 

cancer within his mind,

things that once mattered, 

lose the will to matter more,

the children he once cared for

now must care for him,

he is forced to consider the 

difference between his home 

and a home, 

his home a safe haven, 

a home his prison,

for the man, there’s an age

a certain age, when he becomes

free to seek solace on the 

pillow of his memories

*

© Graham R Sherwood 03/26

~

on what rancid flawed meat

does my anger feed?

my rising tumult of bilious 

stomach-churning outrage,

my futile sense of disbelief 

at what I see, what I hear, 

what I read, my benign disgust 

at heinous world events, tales

of death, of war of poverty 

of hunger of famine, all stoked

by idiotic trumped-up crass 

circus-clown diplomacy, 

sour egotistical, spent old men

gambling with the others’ hand,

this is where my anger feeds

every night, 10pm, BBC

*

© Graham R Sherwood 03/26

~

almost March and a

first real foray outside,

there are ironstone rocks

and gravel to shift, new

canes to buy and raised 

beds to dig over,

his old spade leans there 

like a spectator, it’s ancient,

unfit for use, I sometimes 

talk to it, ask it questions

seek its approval, lean

on it for support when taking 

a breather but when I curl 

my soiled fingers around

the old ash handle, its 

smooth patina feels like

his handshake and I’ll

hear him say ‘come on boy

we’re nearly done’.

*

© Graham R Sherwood 02/26

~

it’s hard to keep my feet, 

on the treacherous 

wet planks, as I peer 

over the rail into the 

turbulent spate, 

it’s coloured a dull green 

like Vaseline and races 

angrily beneath me, 

today, it’s hard to believe 

we sometimes paddle knee

deep under this bridge,

even the beautiful egret 

is out of her depth today,

her yellow boots just visible 

in the lower branches 

of the willow, soon it will be 

the close season again and 

the birds will have the lake 

back for themselves, giving

nature a chance to breathe

and we, an opportunity to 

marvel at its resilience

*

© Graham R Sherwood 02/26

~

seen from above, they

look not far from ants

and use a mutual system

upward and down, albeit

regularly abused, it’s orderly 

with an element of chaos

if seen through the eyes 

of those watching the traffic,

curiously there are few 

serious collisions, mostly 

those manoeuvring 

unexpectedly, usually

to the right, having been

distracted by bright lights,

when food is added to the

equation, etiquette suffers

a rapid breakdown with

multiple instances of late

contre-courant reckless

behaviours, furthermore

site selection of comestibles

purchased is random and

regularly the cause of 

congestion in the primary

channels and best avoided

as the day wains, so does the

voracity and vivacity of 

movement in the mall due

to tiredness and satiety

*

© Graham R Sherwood 02/26

~

I seek tranquillity, I crave 

an inner calm, there must 

be the equilibrium of a restful

thoughtful balm, I will not

pirate troubled seas, or 

follow Icarus to the sun,  

a camomile lawn is perfect

to lay all my woes upon, 

I seek not crass celebrity

or reward for favours shared,

I’m best a sleeping partner

a mere auxiliary who cares,

behind this austere carapace

beneath this brittle shell,

sits a gentle heartbeat 

that none know very well,

if I qualify to be a friend

of those who bid me say

remember this, tranquillity

and equilibrium are

for me the surest way

*

Graham R Sherwood 02/26

~

yesterday, in the vague 

gloaming of the late afternoon

I noticed daylight had crept 

into the early evening calm, 

nibbling silently on the 

indolent dusk, a clear portent 

to the lengthening of days,

this gentle skirmish, fought

between light and dark 

traversing many days can

never ever be truly won

*

© Graham R Sherwood 2/26

~

you asked me once if 

anything still mattered,

if anything still rubbed

me up the wrong way,

true, there was a time

I still had one or two

sharp edges, a scab to

pick at now and then,

a running sore to worry,

strong opinions that bled

me dry and left me pale,

but somehow without 

knowing I was on a ride

I gently hit the buffers

and the first thing I see

is your serene face

that without a word says,

‘Well done, you got here 

in the end’

*

© GRS 02/26