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SMART ARSE
I went to an art class
and drew
a conclusion
That most people there
had no imagination.
They simply drew
what they knew..
I drew a blank.
And when the teacher
pointed out
the starkness
of my markless
piece of paper
I said,
I was drawing breath.
Martin Galton
TEETH
Last week
I had a tooth crowned
It's nice to have a Royal tooth
But this new Royal status
Has caused a hiatus
Amongst the
Chattering classes
It's all gone mental
In the dental
Department
As one disgruntled molar
Put it
Frankly - it's a kick in the
Teeth
Martin Galton
PRELUDE TO POETRY IN GALLERY 33
Whilst Martin likes poems that nourish the soul,
My dad preferred listening to tunes you can hum.
Me - I like most things, though not, on the whole,
A nudge in the ribs or a poke up the bum.
For me, poems can rhyme, though sometimes do not,
The rhythm can canter, but some times just walk,
The line length can vary, I don't care a jot,
So long as there's pleasure, and the listeners don't talk.
So, what I can offer may please you or not,
Though I hope you'll find something to like and to savour.
As I once said in Leeds, I'll be reading choose what,
So you may as well listen and do me a favour.
Richard Exton
ANCESTORS
A brown ship floating on a glassy sea.
Dun-coloured views of Cornwall, Jersey, Deal.
Burnt umber ruins, follies, battlements.
Among these things a picture of two men.
In tones of sepia they stare at me.
The older one looks just like George the fifth.
But these two distant strangers are my kin.
My father's father and his father stand
Four square in merchant navy uniforms.
'You're one of us' their steady gaze proclaims.
They're strangely comforting, these messengers
Whose DNA is curling through my veins.
I interleave this image with the rest
And tidy up the dim, autumnal scraps.
They're fading in a drawer, my life's bequest.
Tony Linforth-Hall
OVERNIGHT
Overnight
an older, greyer woman
came and took my place.
I looked into the mirror
and didnt know her face.
Unnoticed now at parties
where all the trays passed by,
where was there a waiter
who would ever catch my eye?
On tubes and trains I hated
to be offered someones seat.
I really much preferred to
stay swaying on my feet.
I suddenly seemed sensible,
and often asked the way.
Little did they realise
it was me whod gone astray.
From my bag I took my makeup
and put inside instead
my recent acquisition of
a large print A to Z.
I'm in my autumn season
and past all peaks and prime,
but is there any reason
why we can't go back in time?
Let it be
overnight.
Sue Reardon Smith
This is our laptop.
This Christmas will be wired.
My little sister will explode in a minute.
I will write a best-seller.
Mum will e-mail and book holidays.
And Dad
Will
Shout at it.
Sjanneke Milligan
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