haiku by Gerald England

bus not due -
making a pot of tea
last an hour



Gerald England, UK

Both Sides Out by Gerald England

Following
a cold, wet tramp -
arriving,
snow-dripping from neck's back -
a two-hour-chat-cum-cup-of-coffee -
a lift returns me
to where green tulip leaves in the window-box
poke their life
out of the whiteness

Below - the virgin-white garden
Beyond - the ravished slush of road

Inside I warm myself.

Gerald England, Hyde, UK

Why Did You Come? by Gerald England

Why did you come? Why did you come?
that evening seven years ago?
All the trees were covered in snow
You had no money for your taxi fare
and you laddered your stocking on a broken stair
You drank a whole bottle of very best sherry
You called me "Mon Cheri!"
when I dropped the picture on my toe
that evening seven years ago,
why did you come? why did you come?

Why did you come? Why did you come?
that evening seven years ago?
Handel's second flute concerto
was issuing forth from the gramophone
and neither of us that night ever felt alone
Though we said very little what we said meant a lot
for our passions were hot
I wished in my heart you hadn't to go
that evening seven years ago,
why did you come? why did you come?

Why did you come ? Why did you come?
that evening seven years ago?
I'll never rest until I know
You came at nine and did not leave till eight
Bacon, egg and sausage was the breakfast you ate
It wasn't to wish me a happy December
No! Wait! I remember!
Of course! You came to tune the piano
that evening seven years ago,
That's why you came! That's why you came.


Gerald England, UK

Escape by Gerald England

It is necessary
every once in a while
to escape
from the oppressive closeness
of the city;
to take a bus
away from the city
to a small village
up on the moors' edge
from where
I can walk up
into the hills
where there is
no roar of traffic
but the rippling of a stream
Though the city
is but a mere
bus ride away
it could be a million miles
for here is not the solitude
of the city,
which is loneliness,
but the solitude
of the country,
which is freedom.


Gerald England, Hyde, UK.