Sunday 27 September 2020

The Scouts are Back!

My quiet cul-de-sac - loud chatter
I peep outside – what is the matter?
It's Sunday and my coffee brews
A passing lad tells me the news...

It's a pow-wow - scouting style
A joyful first for quite a while
Assorted ages, all with mask;
What today, will be their task?

The woodland beckons straight ahead:
Autumn damp means mushrooms spread
Bright fruiting bodies to our gaze
Beechnut and ripe chestnut phase!

Drizzle, unrelenting grey
But yet more stragglers make their way
Having left their nice warm homes
To huddle on wet cobblestones...

Of course! They've been let off their leash
So parents get some well-earned peace
I'm heartened by their cheery noise
Nature beckons for these boys!

(c) Poet in the woods 2020



Friday 25 September 2020

It's Not looking Good!

 Not subtle this wet change of mood
The chill's upon us and we brood
More of the same and worse to come
Down window panes fat raindrops run.

Puddles fill, walls glisten, damp
Tired blooms look sad and rank
Rainhats, umbrellas - long ignored
Now our companions when abroad!

Bedraggled owners face new threat
How to cope when masks get wet?
In the wings six months of grey
Shops mourn as clients stay away ...

Special offers leave us cold
Racks of clothes remain unsold
Job losses soar as furlough ends
Who could have dreamed up these grim trends?

While weeds in rain rejoice and grow
Winds shake down leaves in golden show
Soon famished foxes, hid from sight,
Will forage in our bins at night ...

(c) Poet in the woods 2020




Wednesday 23 September 2020

Isabella - La Poupée qui fait Bon Ton!

In pink and green with skirt and beads
Our fashion princess swirls with ease
But why the grey-red stethoscope
Hanging round her gentle throat?

Will Isabella be a nurse?
If so, it's here you've heard it first!
Maybe with COVID in the news
This has influenced her views?

Who can tell? Our pert wee Miss
With tumbling blonde locks still sun-kissed
Has such an innate sense of self
No chance she'll stay upon the shelf!

What puzzles Auntie are the specs ..
Shades of Polnareff – what next?
Iconic – though she's not yet three
She milks her audience – and me!

(c) Poet in the woods 2020





Inspiration: French singer Michel Polnareff (born 1944) original song: "La Poupée qui dit non" ...(1966)

Monday 21 September 2020

A For Appreciation

Given that I write for fun,
All topics underneath the sun
Are worth a challenge from my pen:
(This knack I have from way-back-when).

It's not a case of keeping scores
I rarely sell my books in stores
But seven full years down the track
You, dear Readers, still come back!

A 'tally' in the ether notes
Your log-ons, so I garner votes
Hey Presto! Brand new themes explored
My quirky mindset hits a chord ...

We're told that poems do not sell
Yet Keats and Shelley did quite well
And old Will Shakespeare's still in print
Hence my thought-provoking stint.

Shucks ... may I take time out to say
Thanks for passing by today
We have a bond, which though unseen,
Keeps my muse forever green!

(c) Poet in the woods 2020






Ineffable Autumn

 Being 'cooped up' isn't new
Bad weather keeps us indoors too!
We fill our time in myriad ways
Or yield to alcoholic haze...

The Internet keeps us amused
And entertained, if not on booze
Perhaps imbued with long-lost zeal
We de-clutter clothes for real.

Whatever way we justify
Our hours of leisure, time goes by
The seasons change, the leaves once green
Now form a reddish-russet screen.

Summer's butterflies alight
On autumn blooms in fading light
Bright-coloured birds prepare to fly
Nature's exodus is nigh...

The shadows lengthen, it grows cool
The little ones are back at school
No mists or rain but both are due
September – now past half-way through ...

(c) Poet in the woods 2020






Friday 18 September 2020

A Smile goes a Long Way!

The family gathers on settee;
Our brand new cousin wriggles free
At four months Aiden packs a punch
But sits contented after lunch.

My brother, smart in shirt well-pressed
Today is riding on a crest
He celebrates his own new year
With smiling Isabella near.

Her spontaneity is sought
A perfect shot, her sparkle caught
In lucky lens – and right on cue
Her beam full on - which warms me through.

Sharing photos is a joy
No COVID hassles to annoy
Instead our family builds new links

And each lonely moment shrinks!

(c) Poet in the woods 2020






Thursday 17 September 2020

COLOR-ful Journées du Patrimoine

Heritage Days - how they spark joy!
Sites open to the hoi polloi
A Brussels weekend in the sun
Free access? Yes, to everyone!

The theme is COLOR-ful and bright
But COVID measures are still tight
So masked-up guides, absence of queues
But sans a booking - you're refused!

For once the weather plays its part
Historic buildings show their heart
A wealth of styles, graffiti mix
The clever use of coloured bricks ...

Neo-classic, Gothic and Baroque
Mosaics, church and lay, still rock!
A Haute-Ecole, the National Bank
So many artisans to thank!

Bike tours and promenades outdoors
Clever stonework, ancient floors,
An initiative we all applaud
Don't miss out – you won't be bored!

(c) Poet in the woods 2020







Wednesday 16 September 2020

Nothing Lasts Forever!

When there's aught to do yet warm sun shines
Burnished leaves inspire my rhymes
I contemplate friends far away
Who can't have visitors to stay...

It's human contact that we need
Not bargain shopping spurring greed
Consumer goods cannot replace
The spark of joy on a friend's face.

We de-clutter, read, drink to excess
Complain the world is in a mess
Play the blame game and accuse
Our leaders for their selfish views!

Meanwhile the world turns, ice floes melt
Job are lost, more tighten belt
Computers invade all our lives
We stare at screens, not bright sunrise.

News is a no-no - gloom and doom
The needle's stuck in this sad tune ...
Six months in, end of our tether
But - no pandemic lasts forever!

(c) Poet in the woods 2020







Monday 14 September 2020

A Cover-Up?

Place Keym, while waiting for the bus
With shopping bag, not in a rush:
Up comes a woman, mask on ear
Who declaims, so all can hear,

«In this heat, masks suffocate
I just won't cooperate!
The elderly find this a trial
How to know if people smile?»

Two other ladies, one quite frail,
Listened to this dame regale
Them with her tales of woe
Then a young mother, son in tow

Joined the waiting queue in line;
His antics helped to pass the time!
Her audience, with me included
Listened to her rant - and brooded.

Do masks keep us safe and well?
In terms of breathing free, they're hell!
And on a hot day, like today
I'd gladly chuck my own away!

(c) Poet in the woods 2020


Place Keym, Watermael-Boitsfort

Sunday 13 September 2020

Kootenay Lake, British Columbia

Imagine, by a glacier lake
Enclosed by rugged mountain crest
Where birds swoop down their thirst to slake,
Two men have lit a fire and rest.

Outdoors and far from madding crowds
A brief vacation on the sly,
Peace, perfect peace with cheeky clouds
Hanging lightly in the sky.

Deep waters, terminal moraine
Reminders of an ice age past
A village where just few remain
Against a backdrop bold, first class.

On water's edge a boat lies, still
Its time to crest the waves ahead
This peace affords them both a thrill
Life in this spot has lighter tread ...

(c) Poet in the woods 2020




Saturday 12 September 2020

R.I.P. Diana Rigg (1938-2020)

Short-lived, the life of Mrs. Bond
George Lazenby looked on aghast
For once our James's heart grew fond
Alas, this marriage didn't last*...

Nostalgia hits me, I recall
Those Sunday evenings on the box
When Emma Peel and Steed held sway
And «The Avengers» was the tops!

What sadness when I heard the news
Another Sixties' icon leaves
In Diana Rigg we lose
A wondrous actress; the world grieves...

Feisty, sexy, chic and smart
With that twinkle in her eye
We took Diana to our heart
And find it hard to say goodbye...

The dreaded «C» , the enemy
That she and Steed could not combat
But she roams in our memory:
Jump suit, tall boots and bowler hat...

(c) Poet in the woods 2020

* in the 1969 film:  "On Her Majesty's Secret Service"



She died on September 10th, 2020, aged 82.

Wednesday 9 September 2020

Snakes Alive near Namur!

The things you hear on local news!
About this item, don't enthuse.
Watch where you walk in Walloon grass
Two lethal rattlesnakes got past

Their enclosure, a deep pit
And slithered near rail tracks a bit
Skulking in tall grass and weeds
How long before this creature breeds?

They're poisonous so have a care!
Fear stalks the routes around Namur ...
Both found (thank God!) by sharp police;
Who had ordered their release?

From Ireland, Patrick chased them out
This early Christian saint had clout
Endeavouring to save each soul
But can he deal with pest control?

(c) Poet in the woods 2020




Tuesday 8 September 2020

Doorstep Image

Birds cluster on the rooftops
Against the setting sun
Their silhouettes so lightly drawn
As if by artists done.

The evening sky a creamy pink
With wisps like candyfloss
Life seems on pause, I catch my breath
As day and night-time cross.

I feel the chill is setting in
Sweet autumn's gentle token
A single car drives slowly past
And so the spell is broken ...

(c) Poet in the woods 2020









Sunday 6 September 2020

At the Relais du Triporteur

Boitsfort, town-village rolled in one
Attractive in the autumn sun
On the bus route, yet way out
Lakes and cobbles all about ...

Sunday market, eats and clothes
Bars where you can tap your toes
At the 'Kasbah', up small slope
A banjo quartet floats my boat!

Tables, well-spaced, wobbly floor
I have not been here before
Discerning dishes, chocolate cake;
Enthusiastic diners slake

Their avid thirst with wine and beer;
A bench falls over, people stare
A man is thrown back, hits his head
And to a taxi is soon led...

It grows dark - a creeping chill
We wrap up warm, enjoy the thrill
Of sitting in the open air
At last – togetherness to share!

(c) Poet in the woods 2020


124 Rue Middelbourg 1170 Brussels
Sadly, now closed for business ...


Saturday 5 September 2020

On Asking Advice

What happens when you ask advice?
Indecision isn't nice
So if you need professional gen
Ask an expert – and stay zen!

In business, this is always wise
In-house expertise is prized
But when emotions are involved
How should traumas be resolved?

Our inner feelings we can't show
Being tactful helps, I know
We put ourselves in others' shoes
Imagine what to do, enthuse ...

But we are wired in different ways
The workings of each brain amaze!
And body language can betray
All the noble words we say ...

So, should I give advice, or not
And unravel someone's knot?
To others' motives we are blind
Perhaps each must make up his mind ...

(c) Poet in the woods 2020




Friday 4 September 2020

Not a Wash-Out!

Nightmares dog our social plans
In COVID times – lost and loose strands
Social happenings curtailed
'Mice and men'* once more disrailed...

Although we like to plan ahead
Spontaneity's not dead;
A girlfriend cannot make her date
An empty weekend looms – not great ...

Weighed down with shopping, all alone
A kind soul offers car lift home.
A bonus in these troubled times
Warm inspiration for my rhymes!

A Facebook invite comes my way
Concert and eats on Saturday?
Out of the blue – so I accept!
Long live friends – and Internet!

(c) Poet in the woods 2020

* Courtesy Scottish poet Rabbie Burns (1759-96) "The best laid schemes o' mice an' men Gang aft a-gley".




Thursday 3 September 2020

STIB Metro - Line 3

Long pipes in muddy puddles greet
Unwary tourists in the street
Fragile barricades proclaim
Improving roadworks in the rain.

Extending Metro Three begins!
More disruption for our sins
Palais du Midi joins the queue
'Stalingrad' has «village» new.

This North-South link starts at Evere:
'Bordet' station to 'Albert'
And should, if all goes hunky dory,
Permit a faster criss-cross story ...

Musician Thielemans, known as «Toots»*,
Who had longstanding Brussels roots
And played great jazz for this small nation,
Soon will have his metro station!

The kick-off for STIB's latest scheme
Will for downtown drivers mean
More roundabouts and long delays;
Hold on tight for this new phase!

(c) Poet in the woods 2020

* Belgian harmonica and guitar player (1922-2016) - born  Jean-Baptiste Fréderic Isidor Thielemans



Tuesday 1 September 2020

September Soliloquy

Let's think upon this year so far:
Benighted under COVID star
Whose rays are deadly when they strike
We fear another lethal spike ...

No let-up in the summer sun
We thought we'd got it on the run
But countries veered from green to red
So many stayed at home instead.

All shops, long open, plead for sales
But tempting advertising fails
Now autumn tiptoes through the air
So will those roadworks disappear?

It's overcast, the clouds roll in
Traffic build-up, schools begin
Enforced masking Berlin hates
Violent clashes cause debates!

Despite road taxes we must pay
Reduced speeds on the motorway
«New-Normal» comes in many guises;
September heralds more surprises!

(c) Poet in the woods 2020



Berlin