From English Patterns by R J Lodge


 

Visiting Castles in the Nude

I am a carer

But the trouble is that I do not really care

I care for a forty-eight year old man with CP

His name is Hugh Macaroni-Cheese

But I call him Frank

As I cannot be fucked to call him Hugh

We often visit castles in the Kent area

Frank insists that he conducts these visits in the nude

Which is quite gross as I wear a polo shirt and sensible slacks

For some reason his twisted unattractive body seems to attract

And quite often I leave him in female company

Where he often receives a blow or if he is very lucky a fuck

When this happens I take time out to look at the exhibits

And research the castle in question on my mobile phone

Afterwards we retire to the café where we have tea and buns

If Frank has not bored me too much then we visit the gift shop

Where I buy him a fridge magnet

Which torments him as he does not own a fridge

When my shift ends I return him to the home

And leave him in the company of Precious Pearl

I do not miss Frank when he is not with me

As my cherished hobby of night fishing

Takes up the rest of my time

 

Paddling in Dover

As I was sad with my life

I decided to throw myself

From the Admiralty Viewing Platform

At Dover Castle

I reasoned that I would enjoy the view

If nothing else as I fell

I planned my suicide for the

28th of January at 06.00am

At 05.58 I broke from my hiding place

And as my watch touched six climbed the guard rail and jumped

As I fell both St Peter and St Paul grabbed by wrists

And guided me onto Dover Beach

Telling me to enjoy the sunrise

And that paddling

Even in the winter

Was much more fun

 

Rapid Thoughts in a Kent Rose Garden

Albertine Albertine walked along the unlit road

And placed flowers where the stranger had died

She had chosen red roses devoid of thorns

Fringed with pink buttercups

It was said that the stranger was a sailor

Returning to the sea

But his injuries were so severe

That his profession could not be determined

For the rest of the day

Albertine Albertine

Collected other victims of the unlit road

And buried them without ceremony

In the lush grasses of the High Lawns

Near the Hill of Dunkirk

 

 

 


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