Meadowhall

Meadowhall, Place of Commerce and Consumerism,

A shining dome, casting its light over the city,

Equidistant between the City of Sheffield and the Town of Rotherham.

Some call it Meadow Hell, but that’s just a joke,

Surely it’s more like Heaven than Hell!

Robin Hood passed here in the middle ages,

Fleeing from the Norman overlords,

In the forests which spread for miles.

The glow of steelworks and factories once lit up the sky,

Creating the products of Industry,

Shipped out all over the Empire and beyond.

Now we come here to cast our eyes upon the fancy products of the modern world.

The High Street is fading, but the Out of Town Shopping Centre is booming.

Young men and women come here to observe and to be observed,

To walk protected streets amongst the crowds.

It changes from year to year.

Moderno keeps itself in a constant state of flux.

The shopfronts change, the restaurants and fast food venues adapt to compete.

Why would we venture into an old out of date town?

when we could walk in the heavenly warmth of the escalator heaven,

with free parking for all.

It’s ideal for shopping addicts or shopaholics

and those who merely seek refreshment from the stifling oppression of daily office work,

to walk for a time at lunch hour or after hours on the way home,

it is a welcome escape from the work sentence!

For the retired with nowhere else exciting to go,

a pleasing breath of fresh air to get out from behind the four walls of home.

The Meadows of the wastelands of the Don Valley were made into Halls for the devotees of Shopping to attend their communal gatherings on Saturday afternoons,

And now Sundays too, or any other time they can get away from work or home,

To do what they like doing.

The Consumer speaks with many voices,

Wanting everything they can have,

But the total effect is a huge marketplace,

Which the shops are keen to fulfil.