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Carl Halling | + Follow Poet |
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Born On the Goldhawk Road One

I was born at the tail end of the Goldhawk Road
Which runs through Shepherds Bush 
Like an artery, 
And in the mid 1960s,
Served as one of the great centres 
Of the London Mod movement, 
But I was raised in relative gentility
In a ward of nearby South Acton 
Whose vast council estate
Is surely the most formidable 
Of the whole of West London.
Although my little suburb 
Has since become
One of its most exclusive neighbourhoods.
                                                                    
My first school was a kind of nursery
Held locally on a daily basis 
At the private residence 
Of one Miss Henrietta Pearson, 
And then aged 4 years old, 
I joined the exclusive 
Lycee Francais du Kensington du Sud, 
Where I was soon to become bilingual 
And almost every race and nationality 
Under the sun was to be found 
At the Lycee in those days... 
And among those who went on to be good pals mine
Were kids of English, French, Jewish, American, 
Yugoslavian and Middle Eastern origin.
                                                                    
While my first closest pals were Esther, 
The vivacious daughter 
Of a Norwegian character actor 
And a beautiful Israeli dancer, 
And Craig, an English kid like myself,
With whom I remain in contact to this day.
For a time, we formed an unlikely trio:
"Hi kiddy," was Esther's sacred greeting 
To her blood brother, who'd respond in kind. 
But at some stage, I became a problem child,
A disruptive influence in the class, 
And a trouble maker in the streets, 
An eccentric loon full of madcap fun 
And half-deranged imaginativeness.
                                                                  
("Born on the Goldhawk Road" is a versified version of one much reproduced in various forms throughout my writings, although it bears little resemblance to its original, which first glimpsed the light of day in around 2002. It's undergone much modification since then, including the alteration of all names of people and places for the solemn purpose of privacy.)

Copyright © Carl Halling | Year Posted 2015

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