The winners of our October competition were all the residents of The Laleham in Kent. Below you can read all three of their inspiring entries…
Childhood
(The Laleham Residents: Bessie Harvey, Frances Hynes, Margaret Peyman, George Youngs, George Wilson, William Grice, Wendy Osborne, Gordon Hardcastle, Paddy Ellenor, Molly Richards, Sarah Maguire, Thomas Waters, Nancy Abbatt)
Happy days and friendship
Security and holidays
School, and truants!
Good and bad memories
India and London.
Playing out
Cowboys and Indians:
Hiawatha and Minnie-Ha-Ha.
Swings and hopscotch
Skipping rope and marbles
Knock-down Ginger
Hide and seek in bombed-out houses.
Holidays and Wakes Week
Trips to the seaside, Blackpool!
Learning to swim, such an achievement.
Hop-picking was fun.
Watching the panto.
Brothers and sisters and changing nappies.
Feeling on top of the world.
Happiness.
Growing up.
Changes.
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This individual poem was written by a resident in a one-on-one session in his room.
Life’s Journeys
(John Wilkinson, 95)
From my window I saw them
Children, lining the shore, holding balloons
The wind at their backs.
In a moment, as one, all balloons were let go
Over the tides, rising and flying, soon out of sight.
Will we ever see them again?
What is their destination, France, Hungary, Sweden
Or other foreign shores?
Who can say at such an early sighting?
But what of the children
Who opened small fingers
To let the balloons fly?
They too journey onwards
Through living and learning.
Meeting big challenges
In the journey of life.
Make or break meetings,
Good or bad friendships.
To help or to hinder
As the years fly.
Their end is unknown.
Balloons end their journeys,
Children travel on,
For good and for ill.
They develop their lives
To do as they will.
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As a contrast, the home’s resident joker was also inspired to put pen to paper.
Skool Daze
(William Grice, 78)
Playing cricket in the street
With Hitler’s army in defeat
We can tell you what a treat
Chasing cricket balls in bare feet!
Free milk from the bottle
None comes back, but then a lottle
Kiss chase – what a lark!
We can only play it in the park
Ice cream, penny a lump
The more you eat, the more you jump!
One, two, three, four,
Please don’t ask for any more!
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