I'm not a Monarchist but I don't hate
The Queen. I lied to her when I was nine
At Finningley it was. We had to wait
For ages for her standing in a line
She asked me if we had a special day
Off school to come and see her and I said
We did. We didn't. She went on her way
And no-one came to say 'Off with her head'
She's just a person. I thought she was small
And looked a bit like Mum, except the nose
She didn't make a mark on me at all
Until today. It's funny how it goes
I saw her on the telly cross the road
In Enniskillen and the tears flowed
© Gail Foster 2nd June 2022
(During The Queen's visit to Enniskillen in 2012 she visited St Macartin's Cathedral and then crossed the road to the Roman Catholic Church of St. Michael)
Categories:
enniskillen, england, forgiveness, history, ireland,
Form: Sonnet
I remember that day well
Dad wore his best suit
It wasn't really black
But Mum said it would do
I remember arriving early
and waiting for it all to begin
Mum passed me a Hymn book
and told me to join in and sing
I remember the clock striking eleven
well I remember the tenth strike
but then all I remember are the screams
and that blinding flash of light
I remember Mummy crying
and Mrs O'Reilly's face
I remember that sort of sick smell
that hung around the place
I remember seeing flaying arms
and bodies strewn across our street
I remember smelling burning
and the sound of pounding feet
I remember the tears and the bitterness
the continuous crying sound
the sheer hatred, the disbelief
houses burnt too the ground
I remember the man on the TV
in his long black coat
shouting about the revolution
and telling us all how to vote
I remember the revolution claiming victory
while the church bells tolled for the dead
I remember thinking where is Daddy
and crying that night in bed
I remember life was never the same
people abandoned to their fate
but most of all my friend
I remember Enniskillen November eighth
Categories:
enniskillen, ireland,
Form: Free verse