Published by Ventus Books at £4.00
We all write poetry at some time in our lives and mine was as a way of trying to cope with with the depression of having to work shifts as a uniformed police sergeant in a busy city centre with no apparent means of escape.
"Nottingham, famous for lace and Robin Hood, has another face,
Less romantic pretty or good, a pity more don't see,
And would you like to come with me among the late-night revellers ?
At ten o'clock the Friday journey starts and Friday hearts beat fast
Beneath blue serge bravado at the Central Police Parade Room;
The noise of smoking, joking men subsides at the arrival of the Inspector
And numbers are called, not names,
The game is on, fixed points allocated for men to stand
And hands reach out for life-preserving radios;
So on with policeman's hat and coat and walk with me
Along a darkened corridor that leads to flourescent night ..."
Published by Ventus Books at £4.00
We all live our lives through periods of sunshine and through rain. This collection sums up the highs and lows of one person's existence
THE JOSEPH COAT
Make me a coat of many colours, make me a Joseph coat of dreams,
Fashion me a garment that glistens and shimmers,
The likeness of which never before has been seen,
Travel the length and breadth of the kingdom,
Over the mountains and over the seas,
Search high and low for the finest of materials,
Join them all together then and bring it back to me
Colour it : blue from the summer sky, lark-sung and cloudless;
Yellow from the ripening corn swaying in the breeze;
Green from the unexpected view high above a valley;
Red from the setting sun at the end of a perfect day;
Take the colour of children's laughter and mix it with the shades of stranger shaking hands with stranger,
Find the glow that come from the heart of the friendly deed done without asking payment,
Overlap the distinctive shades of nation mixing with nation in a community that values diference,
Cut away the parts that are not needed - the yellow greed for wealth, power and position;
The green envy of material possessions and the steely blue indifference of eyes that are socially superior,
Make the proportions of equal value, a garment that has balance, cut and flair,
Where each single part is as important as the next,
Join it all together, then, with the stitching of truth and justice running throughout the whole,
Make the pockets deep enough to carry the coinage of gifts to the needy, sick and widowed,
The lining warm enough to wrap around the orphaned child at the height of the winter storm,
The sleeves ample enough to hide within them magic tricks to bring a smile to the face of the bedridden child,
And when you have made this coat, this coat of many colours, I shall put it on and wear it and walk among the people,
And when they see it they will all be blinded by its colours, its beauty and its proportions,
Their fingers will itch to caress the silks and suedes,
And they too will want to wear such a garment.