When the light fades

Cherry

By Parson Thru

Thu, 07 May 2020
  • 1379 reads
7 comments
 

“and when he began to snore in his death struggle”*

I thought about that for a while, thinking of my father
Cheyne-Stoking 250 miles from me
With two young nurses who couldn’t recognise the signs
And my mother. Innocent. Confused. Led.

Then a passenger train clattered by three fields away.
I thought about the driver. Concentrating. Sitting in his cabin.
Eyes focused on the vanishing point. Mind on the minutiae of his day.

If we’re lucky, and avoid violence or the fell touch of our own hand
We’ll snore at some point in our death struggle.
Will I think about this evening and the blackbird and his repertoire?
The print fading from my view? The people who I’ll never see again?

Be still.
The blackbirds have the answer.

Don’t think. Listen.

* "After First Fright", Ted Hughes. From "Cave Birds: An Alchemical Cave Drama" (1978)

Certificate U
Poem
Mortality Games
Miscellaneous

Comments

Submitted by littleditty on

Coming back to this - it's so good.

 

Submitted by Parson Thru on

Thank you littleditty.

Parson Thru

Submitted by Ed Crane on

So many of them remind me of my own poignent moments.

Moments which somehow you manage to pen so much more easily than I can.

Cheers!

 

Submitted by Parson Thru on

Hi Ed. I'm glad.

Funny business, this writing lark.

Thank you. I hope you're OK.

Parson Thru

Submitted by Parson Thru on

Thank you cherry picker!

Parson Thru

Submitted by Tom Brown on

"I thought about the driver. Concentrating. Sitting in his cabin. Eyes focused on the vanishing point. Mind on the minutiae of his day".

I always believed train drivers sleep most of the time Kevin I mean it doesn't take much to steer a train and no one would lie over the tracks. I want to be a train driver a steam locomotive all I want is the throttle and the whistle.

Keep well! Tom Brown

 

Submitted by Parson Thru on

What a lovely idea, Tom.  I hope you get to do so.

Parson Thru