Mark Chagall

Mark Chagall
Whose stained glass we saw
Last year, in Tudeley Chapel
He died in 1985
He was born in 1887
He was the oldest of the artists
Who died in 1985

You too would find longevity
If you take the time
To sit awhile
In the peace of Tudeley Chapel
As the sunbeams stream through
Moishe Zakharovich Chagall’s
Stained glass windows

You too should discuss humanity
If you arrive
Just after Sunday service
When the congregation
Are no longer congregated
But free to talk
To talk widely and deeply

You too could wait outside
Sit on a bench
In the graveyard
Or wander around this place of shelter
With your SLR camera
Taking photographs
Of this years July flowers

You too may also smile
Be thankful
Be happy
Be peaceful
Be thoughtful
Be at ease
Be here simply to be

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1985 - Live Aid, Music as my Shelter

1985 - Live Aid, Music as my Shelter
George Michael - Careless Whisper
The Power of Love
Ten weeks at number one

Bruce Springsteen charted for the first time
Yes, I was Dancing in the dark
Imagining that I had been
Born in the USA

Katrina and the waves gifted us
Walking in Sunshine
While Billy Idol sang of
A White Wedding

And Talking Heads
Surely you remember Talking Heads
They got to number 6 with
Road to Nowhere

Was it really so so long ago
That the young and innocent
Fresh faced Aled Jones was
Walking in the Air

Fergal Sharkey, Phylis Nelson, Eurythmics
Pet Shop Boys, Paul Hardcastle, Bowie &Jagger
Whitney Houston, Madonna and Dead or Alive
All had number ones

Back to Jennifer Rush
The Power of Love
Sold over 1.28 Million copies
And was the highest for that year

Madonna had most weeks on the chart
By a long shot, twenty four more
Than Springsteen, and thirty six more than
Nick Kershaw with Wide Boy and Don Quixote

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I had set myself up

I had set myself up
I had followed previous pathways
I had engineered the circumstances
I had encouraged myself to be vulnerable

Who is this I
Who does not let go of past pleasures
Who is this I
Who does not hang on to present situations

It is not the time for shadows
Neither is it the time for daylight
It is not the time for doubt
No, but it is time to polish the certainties

Do I mean to polish the certainties
Of a time which I cannot yet remember
Or do I mean to polish the certainties
Of the here and the now

The book on my lap is titled
100 Years of Art in Britain
I thought it might lead me to Chris Drury
Even though the centenary concluded in 1988

In 1985 it celebrates Tim Head’s Erasers
Which is also on the front cover
Thereby providing repetitive homage to
 ‘the world’s final balance continued existence’

There is, or so it seems so far
No continuation of the trail to Friston Forest
Or at least no sign of the continued existence
Of Shelter for Dreaming, or its heir apparent

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So the shelter which isn’t finished

So the shelter which isn’t finished
Has become a place of choice
With water flowing and splashing
It is a fine spot for a pre-packed salad

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I couldn’t help myself

I couldn’t help myself
But to elevate the pond
Now the blackbirds
Come here to join me
To duck, to waddle
To shake themselves all over
Today a new one arrived
More pristine, more reserved
Than his friend, who he watches
This pond then, in 2019
Has become their shelter
Especially in the sunshine
Such as there is today
Also the lawn has been mowed
The waterfalls and fountains
Are in full working order
If there was a building inspector
I think he would sign the job off
Although I myself can see
One or two places for improvement
A few more stones, a few more pebbles
A flatter spirit-level top-line
All around the periphery
Such details might be lost on you
But to the artisan who knows
They would draw some comment

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