This town of mine

Someone sent a photograph
of how it used to be
Shoreham when I was a lad
Evoked a memory

Magnificent II revisited

5 of 12 in the Jemverse ‘October’ series

Long shadows with October
the days dawn cold and bright
and the sunshine in the eastern sky
provides a gorgeous sight
Glinting on the water
and magnificently gold
Rising over Shoreham beach
to the river in the cold

To end a perfect day

To end a perfect day
we walked along the beach
our small dog running free and proud
the sea in easy reach
The shadow of the sun
spread gold across the sky
A fitting end to perfect day
as together we strolled by

Watersoft

This water soft
beneath my feet
lapping gently
feeling sweet
It is a comfort
solace, more
down at the edge
of this seashore

Cherry blossom lovely

The cherry blossom’s in full bloom
on the allotment in the sun
as I sit here and write a while
now the strimming is all done
The grass grows quick this time of year
so I’m down here quite a bit
with spare batteries in my bag
in case the good ones quit

First Bluebells

Saw my first bluebells
in the sunshine today
Quite close to the river
down Old Shoreham way

Jumping Patterdales

Walking on the riverbank
with a jumping Patterdale
On a sunday afternoon
with a waggy tail
He’s happy to be there
as are we this lovely day
The old Tollbridge behind us
for a wander and a play

Every Breaking Wave revisited

No 11 of 12 in the Jemverse series ‘Back to the sea’

With every breaking wave
I see a part of me
My life down here in Sussex
In Shoreham by the sea
So taciturn, its nuances
Reflect the changing years
An echo to my lost and loved
My joy, my smiles, my tears

I watched the sea revisited

No.2 of 12 in the Jemverse series ‘Back to the sea’

I watched the sea
It did me proud
I smiled at it
Then laughed out loud
The warming sun
Bright in my face
On Shoreham beach
My special place

A Sussex view

Sun sets on a winter sea
Golden ‘cross wet sand
as we go walking at low tide
as lovers, hand in hand

A walk on the beach

It’s the day before Christmas
so a walk on the beach
seems like a plan
as it’s in easy reach

And tradition would have it
that on this day every year
All Crouchers together
go walking with cheer

Same

More than fifty years on
and the smell on the air
is the same to me now
as it was way back there
That of sea and the tar
and the pitch and the oil
and the sweat and the grime
from the long days of toil

Bliss II

Across wet sand
as evening falls
the sea a whisper
silence calls
And here stand I
to witness this
exquisite moment
born of bliss

These Streets…

These streets are mine
a thousand times I tread them every day
I know them well, I hold them dear
with words I cannot say

These streets are mine
Familiar, I know them every one
be that when cold and raining
or brighter in the sun

On built up embankments

Standing on built up embankments
for a moment or two at midday
It’s a pleasure to see the old oyster beds
and seabirds out there at play

Sheep may safely graze

Bach, three hundred years ago
wrote an aria for some sheep
with words by Salomon Frank
full of meaning, rich and deep

Sheep may safely graze and pasture
and they do still to this day
as we approach the roundabout
down here round Shoreham way

Seagulls Passing (reprise)

2 of 6 in the Jemverse ‘Seagulls’ series

Sitting in the sunshine
by the river at high tide
A seagull came and perched
on the railings by my side
We had a little chat
as it seemed the thing to do
Passing a few pleasantries
before away he flew

Pleasure to bring

Went for a walk
in the town where I live
It’s still got attraction
and plenty to give

And I sill get a buzz
when I’m walking down here
It brings a warm feeling
and plenty of cheer

It’s a gull’s life

“So, this wall in the sun
makes a great place to view
this town where we live
don’t you think, just us two?”

“You’re not wrong my friend
it’s a great place to be
down here by the river
not far from the sea”

At Twilight…

Two figures on a darkened shore
down by the glistening sand
Out there in the distance
walking hand in hand

This is a time for lovers
with a new moon in the sky
As, on a turning tide, the waves
whisper with a sigh

To grin or not to grin

And there out to the distant West
Gold fades across the sea
As twilight swiftly passes
and the night time comes to me

Silhouette

At twilight down on Shoreham Beach
When the light is fading fast
And the whisper of the turning tide
Is dark as we walk past

The rising moon out to the East
Glistens on wet sand
Bright just like the sunshine
In the shadows where we stand

St Mary of the Harbour

So, there’s already some words written
about me as I am today
But there’s more to make the story
complete in every way
For once I was much bigger
cruciform in shape
Part of Shoreham’s presence
on the Sussex south landscape

Church

5 of 6 in the Jemverse ‘Shoreham’ series

Nine hundred years I’ve been here
in Shoreham’s ancient port
A Catholic church turned Anglican
the parish to support
My cruciform original has
crumbled over time
But what is left still standing
is still within its prime

Shingle

4 of 6 in the Jemverse ‘Shoreham’ series

The shingle covered beaches
mightn’t be your cup of tea
But they’re all a part of Sussex
so that’s good enough for me
You might prefer the feel of sand
Well Shoreham has that too
For at low tide there’s great expanse
extending from the land

Quirky

3 of 6 in the Jemverse ‘Shoreham’ series

And I am a community
fascination here to pique
All along the river bank
quirky and unique
Houseboats here in residence
tradition to bizarre
Conformity is alien
I’m not particular

Convenient

2 of 6 in the Jemverse ‘Shoreham’ series

There’s a house whose walls were green
but now they’re painted grey
Where for quarter of a century
we have been every day
It’s positioned in a little street
just up from Shoreham station
Fifteen minutes from the beach
if you’ve the inclination

At Home

Part 6 of 6 in the Jemverse ‘At Home’ series

At home this little series
concludes today when I
get back there from the Midlands
late this evening, by and by
Still a few hours travelling
but the further south I go
the closer home it takes me
which is wonderful to know