I Used To Be Busy

I used to be busy, no time left for me, My chosen profession would not set me free. No time to spend with my family and friends, I had to keep at it, right up to the end. I climbed up the ladder, right near the top, My time more consumed, the higher I got. Sometimes I worked on, and got home real late, If I hadn’t been there, poor profits we’d make. I lived for my work, for so many long years, The rest of my hobbies, they all disappeared. ‘Twas lucky my family knew only too well, That just to survive, I must walk right through hell. Then one time too many, they said your job’s gone, They thought that like often, I’d opt to go on. My record was perfect, they offered me more, They couldn’t believe, when I walked out the door. They offered a job with near twice as much pay, And better incentives, to try make me stay. They said I was needed, they treasured my skill, They’d give me the earth, if their job I would fill. But my heart said that I should abandon the race, And let my life take a more leisurely pace. To spend time with my family, and feel free at last, Enjoying the things, time had robbed in the past. ‘A change is as good as a rest’, so they say, Unfortunately mine did not bring any pay. And sometimes I feared that I’d made a mistake, To follow my dreams, and my job to forsake. But now I have found me another good role, Without all the pressures that helped drain my soul. I’m dealing with people, right at the front line, But only when working it takes up my time. My free time’s my own, for my family to share, A quarter the pay, but I don’t give a care. The bills are all mounting, and ‘though that’s not fine, I’ve now time for living, not crippling my mind. It’s so many years since I wrote things in rhyme, Now I find that I’m doing it all of the time. This helps me relax and with this therapy, I truly can now let my feeling soar free. If I had continued along my old way, My head would have blown, they’d have took me away. But one things for sure, that with no time to play, You would not have been reading this poem today! Ivor G Davies