17th July 2025 • The HERALD • Page 85 v INDEPENDENT, LOCAL AND PROUD v Poets Corner A Service Wife’s Prayer by Jim Dolbear© I ran to you, you said hello, All too soon it was time to go. And as I looked into your eyes, You held me close said our goodbyes. Now you have gone so far away, Each night before I sleep I pray. at you will come home safe to me. And that our love will ever be. So as I lay me down to sleep, I pray your god will safely keep. And one day we’ll walk hand in hand, To trace our footsteps in the sand. e sea will always wash the shore, And I will love you ever more. THE BARTLEY PARK PARKRUN by Mike Bennett© I turned 75 just last week I’ll admit that my bones often creak But I’ll stick with my plan That I’ll run while I can After all, I have still yet to peak Bartley Park’s very close to my heart 9am and we’re ready to start Though it isn’t a race Some will set a fast pace 3, 2, 1 and it’s time to depart Local people are here by the score For ‘first timers’ it ‘opens the door’ ‘Tourists’ here from afar Came by bus, train and car And so many will come back for more As a marshal it’s always great fun But, today, I have chosen to run If I tire, then, I’ll walk And, to others, I’ll talk There’s no pressure on anyone Halfway ‘round, I’m delighted to say I feel good and it’s going OK As each lap passes by Giving me such a ‘high’ It’s an excellent start to my day On the faces of others I see They’re enjoying themselves, just like me And our goal is the same ‘Do’ 5K is our aim Check the website-the ‘run’ is quite free At the ‘Start’ there are toilets to use Course is flat, which is always good news Marshals help point the way So you don’t go astray You can run, jog or walk as you choose This ‘old-timer’ can do it and so Why not try it, just give it a go “Bartley Park” is the name You’ll be glad that you came At the ‘Finish’ you’ll feel a huge glow! THE DRAGONFLY by Dorothy Lockyer© Sitting by the sh pond, what a beautiful sight! Such a brightly coloured dragon y did alight Metallic blue, so iridescent in the sun Like a mini helicopter, having such fun! Zipping to and fro, hovering, rising, landing Across lily pads, ripple of water sparkling. Its four wings, shimmering, like gossamer just spun. Be very quiet, you may hear their gentle thrum. Life starts for the dragon y in a pond or stream, Its reputation is being vicious and mean! When the time is right he emerges and is free Discarding his nymph - like body, ready to ee No longer able to return from whence he came Changed, become a new creature in a new domain. I ponder and wonder, that when the time is right, If like the dragon y I’ll ascend to the height? To a new world, as a di erent creation, Making my way to a nal destination! Haunting Aroma by David K Wilson© As the full moon passes over A starlit summer sky Silver shadows on the river Shimmer dancing by Eddies swirl like Catherine wheels To appear and disappear As the water rushes silently Beneath the disused weir Moonlight highlights eerily The sad neglected mill Once the hub of village life Now dejected lonely still Paddles still that once were proud Hanging rotting and decayed But the water rushes ever on Through remnants of past days Dusty windows looking out Upon the moonlit scene below Lawns once mowed now a meadow Wave seed heads to and fro Fishing piers now fallen in And swept beneath the weir Thoughts return to summers past And memories bring tears I remember how the miller Ground his flour every day Hands waved as the locals passed Like a ghost in white we’d say I remember well his fresh baked bread Made from flour from the mill The very best bread a man could get The aroma haunts me still Then suddenly I’m reminded Of the smell of fresh baked bread Is it coming from the mill? Or from deep within my head And then just for an instant I see the miller standing there And behind his dusty window He runs his fingers through white hair Then just as quick he fades away Slipping back into the past Was I longing for a time gone by? A time that couldn’t last The full moon hangs there eerily Above this sad old mill Memories of a time gone by Standing motionless and still And as the full moon passes over This starlit summer sky And the water rushes ever on I wipe the tears out from my eyes EJECT, EJECT (EJECTION SEAT) by Martin Grist© Eject, Eject it worked to great e ect, my life was saved, I am grateful and my Family are too, it’s the best part of the plane in my view. Fast ying, taking chances is what makes the best Flyers. If we have no way of escape then we wouldn’t be such triers, so many lives saved, none but the brave. Of course we are brave, ‘cos there’s a way out. Of that I am in absolutely no doubt. The copyright of all poems that are published in The Herald belong to the author and must NOT be reproduced without their permission Send your poems to us at 2 High Street, Hythe, Southampton SO45 6AH or email: editor@herald-publishing.co.uk AGE-OLD SONG by David K Wilson© Seeds discovered old and dry Devoid of life without sun or sky Ten long years kept from the light In an old tin can stored out of sight Until one day an aged old man Picks up the rusty old tin can Spots the seeds so sad and dry A lack of sunlight from the sky He wonders if the seeds would grow In a seed tray plants just one small row Tenderly he feeds the seeds A gentle spray with a compost feed He daily looks for tiny shoots And quietly speaks to encourage roots Until a tip of green peeks at the sun And roots spread downwards one by one A leaf appears then two then four To grow taller than the greenhouse door Buds bursting forth heading for the light Yellow sunflowers for the mans delight They scatter fresh seeds all around Next year’s seeds on fertile ground And so the cycle moves along Small miracles from an age-old song *Private advertisers only .............................................................................................. .............................................................................................. .............................................................................................. .............................................................................................. .............................................................................................. .............................................................................................. .............................................................................................. .............................................................................................. .............................................................................................. 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