Saturday 30 March 2019

Hooray, it's Playfair Day! (I mention it in this poem from "Momentary Stars".)

CRICKET BAG IN WINTER

It's ancient, stained and one strap's gone
- you'll never use it again, you know.
The pockets hold old bowling marks,
just flattened beer-tops, really,
though one is aluminium with a spike,
made by my elder brother
at Gravesend Art School, 1949.
There's aged tissue, different types -
and don't look closely at the pink protector -
a single bail, a ragged fixture list:
'Postponed, Lost, Abandoned, Rain'.
And one sweat-stained inner batting glove.
I must have scored a few, then.
Occupied the crease, more like.
It's gone, it's history, it's thrown
in the skip ... but to think never,
never more to know that lovely fear
when walking out and taking guard again!

And soon, very soon, when every day
we sniff the air and study the clouds,
when the Playfair Annual is just about
to bloom on the shelves of Smith's,
when buds on the rowan tree
are full and thick as a rainstorm
about to knock on my bedroom window -
let's think again when April's here!

Wednesday 13 March 2019

Where’s the ‘L’ in Omost?

Keep hearing ‘omost’ - used to be almost - and wondering where it’s come from? It sounds rather odd to me but I guess my language must be somewhat old fashioned

Monday 4 March 2019

What’s in a word?

Six year-old grandson, now reading all and sundry, wanted to know if there was a word which had all the vowels in. His Dad, after some thought, came up with ‘abstemious’ and Grandfather added ‘abstemiously’ suggesting the ‘y’ could also be used as a vowel - good thinking family!

Eldest grandson, now 12, is no. 4 in Under 13 England Table Tennis squad. His favourite words include ‘choi’ each time he does a good shot! Between Norwich & London he read half of Maggie O’Farrell’s memoir of near death experiences and is eager to discuss with his mother who has yet to read it. A wordy lot.

The two granddaughters, both younger siblings, love their words in both books and as song lyrics. Our older granddaughter is making comparisons with BrE and AmE while the 5 year-old is using phonics as she sounds out her words enthusiastically. She’s cracked it and is already experiencing the joy of reading.