These poems are about the tragedies that can befall us all in life
Dad (written some time after my father lost his battle against Cancer one week before his 59th Birthday)
Diana, Queen of Hearts (written in response to the death of Princess Diana. I had very little interest in her when she was alive but still felt the impact of her sad and shocking death)
John (written a long time - 9/10 years - after our unborn son died in the womb at 20 weeks. At the time it seemed like my only chance of being a father. My wife had to actually be induced to give birth naturally which only served to increase the pain of loss.)
Remember (written about the loss of life in the First World War. It was prompted by the lack of support for a Remembrance Day parade at a local village Cenotaph)
Nicky (to commemorate my most beloved friend Nicky. She was the most adorable dog and was my constant companion at work for twelve years, until she died in March 1999)
THE POEMS!
Dad
When I was young you were always there,
Making certain we hadn't a care.
Making sure we had a roof over our head,
Good warm clothes and keeping us fed.
Always there with a helping hand,
when on the floor we did land.
Somehow you seemed so large and strong,
And yet it wasn't really long,
Before we all grew to be like you,
And we no longer seemed to need you too,
But you didn't seem to mind,
Because you knew that we would find,
That there were times that we'd still need to share,
Your very special brand of care,
And if we needed some advice,
You were there in a trice,
But slowly we all moved away to pastures new,
And never saw as much of you,
But you never complained or asked us why,
We sometimes didn't seem to try,
To make an effort to visit you,
You accepted we had other things to do,
But all too soon you faded away,
Even though we wanted you to stay,
The way you had always been,
Always bright with a mind so keen,
No longer were you strong and bold,
You became just weak and old,
And then one day you were suddenly gone,
And suddenly I had to be so strong,
I'd learnt how to be, from you,
But I still found it so hard to do,
It was so hard to see you when you were ill,
And to lose you even harder still,
But you will always live on in my heart,
And you will always play a part,
In the way that I live by days,
And I will remember you always,
Because I miss you Dad terribly still,
And I know that I always will.
Darren 20th June 1997
You broke into all our hearts one sunny July day,
We knew that someone special had truly come our way,
You only had to ask and we would have given you the Moon,
But now you've broken all those hearts, because you've gone away
too soon.
You touched the souls of all those you met,
And even those you didn't, will never you forget,
Your smile warmed the coldest of hearts,
Even in the worlds most foreign parts.
Your name has been spoken the world around,
But for you this day, a minute without a sound,
We have lost our most cherished national treasure,
Someone who could bring so much pleasure.
All it took was your smile so bright,
And those deep blue eyes, like stars in the night.
And to the sad, the forlorn, the sick, and the lonely,
The world seemed just a little more homely.
Perhaps this is the way that fate had decreed,
You would be here in a time of need,
Loved by us all, as if you were our friend,
Then mourned by us all, at your tragic end.
Your life, to us all, was like a fairytale,
A vulnerable Princess who sometimes could fail,
But that only made us care for you more,
And now that you've gone our hearts are so sore.
Your candle burned so fiercely, with a bright light,
Now it's gone out I wonder if we might,
Have taken too much from you, your compassion and Love,
And somehow then sent you, too soon, up above.
Did we demand too much of our fragile Princess,
Did you find it hard always trying to impress,
Trying so hard not to make the mistake,
That would lead to the critics calling you fake.
Were you just a victim of our desire to know,
Was it too hard to cope, forever being on show,
If so, then I'm sorry, for we miss you so much,
We need our Diana, with the gentle touch.
Darren Amos 6th September 1997
I remember......
a night so long,
a night when I had to be so strong,
a night when I was torn apart inside,
a night when our little boy died.
I remember.....
the pain deep in your eye,
the pain that made us both cry,
the pain that just wouldn't go away,
the pain I can still feel today.
I remember....
the son who's gone,
the son that was to be named John,
the son who had already brought us joy,
the son who was to be our boy.
I remember.....
the horror of that night so dark,
the horror of the hospital room so stark,
the horror I felt when they took him away,
the horror I feel when I remember today.
I remember....
the pain of grief,
the pain from which there is no relief,
the pain that hurts so much, and yet,
the pain means that I won't ever forget.
I remember.....
how much we cried,
how much it hurt when John died,
how much he brought us great joy,
how much we loved that little boy.
Darren 7/12/96
Remember this day, all the thousands of
men,
Marching out bravely, into battle again.
Fighting a war they couldn't understand,
Down in the mud, with a gun in their hand.
Bullets whistling past, though they knew not why,
Wondering if today was the day they would die.
Remember this day, all the woman at home,
Husbands at war, lost and alone.
Writing letters that might never be read,
Thinking of all the things they had done and said.
Dreading the Telegram to say he had gone,
As day after day the fighting went on.
Remember this day, all the mothers too,
Who knew this was something their sons must do.
Crying all night, though their sons never saw,
because she couldn't upset him as he went off to war.
Wishing and hoping, for his safety each day,
And last thing each night kneeling to pray.
Remember this day, all the fathers so proud,
Shouting and cheering ever so loud.
As their sons in new uniforms went marching past,
Thinking this sighting might be their last.
And only later at night behind the closed door,
Letting their tears fall to the floor.
Remember this day, all the children forlorn,
Whose fathers had gone away before they were born.
Perhaps never to see their own boys and girls,
Or the joy on their faces as they played with their toys.
Growing up without fathers to play with or talk,
Or take them to the park, or just for a walk.
Remember this day, all those men in their prime,
Taken from this world, before their time.
Never to be Husband, Grandfather or Dad,
Never to have what the rest of us had.
Going to war, to fight for a cause,
Going away to fight other peoples wars.
Remember this day, how brave each man was,
We must remember, and not forget them, because,
Perhaps we will realise the true cost of war,
And then not repeat the horror those men saw,
And then we won't ruin thousands more lives,
Not just the soldiers, but the mums, kids, and wives.
Remember this day, the first day of Peace,
The day that the fighting was brought to a cease.
No more cannon fire, or men to be killed,
No more mortar, or gas, all the guns stilled,
At eleven o'clock, on the eleventh of November,
Remember it well, we must
Remember.
Darren 10/11/96
Let me tell you about a friendly dog called Nicky,
Who was anybodies friend for the price of a chocolate biccie,
She loved all types of biscuit but I will tell you that,
Her favourites we called Dog-Digs, (to you, known as Kit Kat!)
Let me tell you more about the Mutt that I called Nicks,
A clever little dog, but she didn't do any tricks.
She loved to pay Fetch, But she never learned to drop,
And once she'd got you playing, She didn't want to stop!
She had one special toy, that she thought was really good,
If she wanted your attention, she gave you Christmas Pud!
She'd shove it in your hand, then push it with her nose,
And if you didn't hold it she'd sit upon your toes!
She'd sit quietly behind you, and you'd suddenly sense she was
there,
She'd begin to wag her tail and fix you with a stare,
She'd send you a little message, how just isn't clear,
but you knew just what she wanted, perhaps by the way she cocked
one ear.
She'd lay down on the floor, and with one paw, brush her hair,
and if she wanted to listen she'd sit on the middle stair,
Just waiting for someone to mention that word, ...Walk,
She understood every word we said, and I'm sure she could almost
Talk!
She loved to pose for a camera, She stood there Oh so proud,
But if you took too long, she began to bark out loud.
You knew that in the Winter, curled up by the heating she would
be,
and almost every evening she'd sit and watch TV.
Then later on at night, as she curled up in her bed,
She'd start to moan out loud when she thought enough was said.
I miss my little friend, now that she's no longer here,
And on the day she went, I shed more than just one tear,
She overflowed with Love right up until the end,
She really was THIS man's DEAREST, and BEST FRIEND
Darren 29th March 1999