An Old Family Cemetery
headstones, row after row, like jagged teeth
with old, bleached bones beneath
each stone etched with family memories
each stone names family histories
a wealth of generational information
some from the founding of the nation
a treasure trove for a genealogist
and plenty of stories for a mythologist
all of the family’s ancestors
are in the cemetery sequestered
MY DESK
At me station
Where I am bound,
And found
Most days,
Where words wander,
In and out of thoughts that pander,
To where for some
I am poet of writing down,
Lines of hope, love, quotes, and notes of thought,
Or otherwise you see,
I am historian, researcher, genealogist of forbears,
And back in time my attention is drawn figuratively
To the works of peasants and workers in fields,
Of others standing in the dock
Accused of stealing a half-penny’s worth of hope,
Or others who have risen up and struck against
The tyranny of mankind’s laws and religious views,
And for some they made the journeys
To another side of the flat earth believed at the time.
Then my role some days,
Can be literally
Counsellor to kids,
In my guise as dad over transfer of conversation tool,
But at me station most days,
I am distributing life to meet my needs
And to satisfy my wants,
Of feeling good,
Of feeling worthwhile,
That my day is constructed well
To the furtherance of soul
And my station most days I’m found.
Francis Cooper – Mac © 08-Jul-20
IT COULD NEVER BE
It could never be
only me,
as I search,
and research
for a missing connexion,
for end to a puzzle that baffles,
and confounds and confuses
even the best of sleuths,
and when the rummaging around
seems hopelessly lost,
that as a cause
we genealogists all seem stuck
in a bygone age of forebears
and ancestors of previous times,
until to me, realization comes strong
have I yet prayed to the one?
Yes, the one who has all answers,
and have I lifted up my earthly cares,
for there is in,
and amongst all the clues of interest strong,
an elusive link that evades capture,
and it makes me mull over,
that without prayer
I am clueless and without connection,
to what I seek in the past
and amongst many documents in hand,
I can associate
to what I seek for conclusion,
of forebears on family tree,
that until I pray;
there is no way
my family tree is complete.
The Genealogist
I have the results of my DNA
And am now in much dismay.
It says I came from different lands
Places that I had never planned.
I always thought my family tree
Was straight and solid as it could be.
Have a direct line to the Plantagenet Kings
But now I'm beginning to see weird things.
Related to third cousins I never knew
Strange sounding names for quite a few.
Should I contact them and introduce my self?
Or hide the results on my closet shelf?
Wish had never taken the saliva test
Shaky nerves now I must confess.
I am not the same person it really seems.
Because I've lost all my self-esteem.
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