Before I Get There & Mist

Just two short poems this time, they are thematically linked and were written on consecutive days but refer to the same journey from London to my beloved Cornwall. The first is a set of three Senryū, you may have noticed - it is one of my favourite verse forms.



Before I Get There 05 Sep 85

From London, a road
Serpentine, westward leading
Taking me homeward

City walls fading
In the east. Granite hedges
Are beckoning me

Sunrise behind me.
I watch the shadows shorten
And leave the ocean



Mist 06 Sep 85

Gradually
Time sliding into an afternoon
Of peace
The haze of autumn
Stretched and torn
By hills and trees
Left, lying abandoned
In the hollows



Back again before too long

What Will Happen?

Recently I have been getting several references to my first year here in Cornwall, things people [and other beings] have been saying and questions they have posed. Looking for a poem to add here, I chose the year 1984 at random and the second poem I looked at, though written nearly six years prior to the move from London, did show the way my mind was working and some of the fears that were beginning to surface, the "pot-bound" reference was actually from a friend who said that if I didn't move fairly soon then I probably never would. Thinking back, I feel that Frances was one of my guardian angels - gently encouraging my move out of London. If she ever reads this blog and recognises herself, I would like to say - Thank you, Frances you really helped me to do what was right for me, bless you. Please get in touch, add a reply to this post.

Now, on with the poem...



What Will Happen? 29 Oct 84

Sitting in the gathering gloom
I feel a twinge of fear
At the thought of leaving
I've been here most of my life
So I don't know if the feelings I have
Are due to the fact
That the roots go deep
Or if I'm pot-bound

At the same time as the fear
I feel hope
I would like to move to Sennen Cove
The sea, the sand, the open spaces
The loneliness - maybe

What will happen?

Image via Wikipedia

Now I know 'what will happen' and I am really glad it did. Didn't actually move to Sennen Cove but only four miles north of there - but it is still home.

Thank you for reading and putting up with my memories ☺