Mangolicious

Had a Mangolicious Laines
a lovely IPA
fruity and refreshing
at the end of a long day
Eating at the Open House
all my girls and me
and a lovely Wolfgang
for a delicious tea

©Jemverse

Photo – Jempics

Definitions: ‘Mangolicious’ is a fruity IPA from the Brighton brewery ‘Laines’. The ‘Open House’ is a Brighton gastro-pub where one of the main brews on tap is ‘Laines’. ‘Wolfgang’ is my middle daughter’s Patterdale terrier.

Summer’s swansong II

On this September morning
sunshine greeted me again
and as this could be the summer's swansong
no one could lay the blame
if today instead of working
to the beach I went instead
to seize the opportunity
and by my heart be led

So that's what I resolved to do
'no brainer' some would say
as it's not often in September
that it's as hot as this today
Ne'r a cloud above in sight
the sky the deepest blue
with a breeze from early summer
I'd forgotten that I knew

And of course I found a hagstone
for my collection of such things
another treasure from the place
that pulls at my heartstrings
This beach, this perfect haven
here in Sussex by the sea
which at the summer's swansong
is the only place to be

©Jemverse

Photo – Jempics (a ‘hagstone’ is found pebble with a natural hole right through, sculpted by the sea). I have not left a Sussex beach without at least one for as long as I can remember. So I have a great many hagstones now!

Living in Shoreham

On the last day of August
I crossed the bridge from the town
as this view of Shoreham
brings a smile not a frown
and whenever I see it
a pinch I must give
to myself to remind me
that here's where I live

This town by the river
and yes, by the sea
nestled under the Downs
sheltered there by the lea
and this view from the beachside
never fails to impress
so I'm proud when I say
I've a Shoreham address

©Jemverse

Photo – Shoreham town from the beach side of the Adur Ferry Bridge – Jempics

Widewater Lagoon

Widewater Lagoon
right next to the sea
on a day like today
is the place to be
There are people just walking
whilst some cycle by
and every so often
a seagull I'll spy
It's such a nice walk
on my way to the beach
so I'm massively grateful
it's in easy reach
as it means to this place
I can come for a wander
on days like today
and not let them squander

©Jemverse

Photo – Widewater Lagoon looking west, Lancing, West Sussex – Jempics

Release II

In Lewes on the river path
we walked beside the Ouse
watched it flow in from the sea
meandering to use
That aged water, aged flow
o'er many years has seen
and where along its grassy banks
many souls have been

In Lewes Wolfgang, Sal and I
in spite of summer rain
walked up beside the river
as we are back here again
That aged water, aged flow
cathartic here today
releasing the endorphins
in every single way

©Jemverse

Photo – The river Ouse at Lewes, East Sussex – Jempics

Moulded

Shaped though many hours
by the touch of sea and sand
this wonderful breakwater
now moulded by their hand
encapsulates the aura
that this seascape holds for me
from a life spent here in Sussex
on the beach and near the sea

This sculpted inspiration
with a charm there of its own
has long held fascination
from the years here I have known
and though these precious heirlooms
are now fading over time
I will capture them for memory
where they stay uniquely mine

©Jemverse

Photo – Jempics

Beach IV

The beach is a landscape
when the tide is this low
the sky big and wide
with the shingle below
the water far distant
with rocks in between
with familiar seaweed
we've so often seen
yet it still brings excitement
for adventure and more
which over the years
we have used this beach for

So we'll treasure this landscape
by the edge of the sea
which has long given pleasure
to this family
and under the sky
with its canopy wide
we will wander and still
in its friendship confide
for we are as one
this landscape, this reach
down here in fair Sussex
and at home on the beach

©Jemverse

Photo – Goring beach, West Sussex – Jempics

St Mary’s at night

St Mary's at night time
against black of the sky
looked really impressive
as we wandered by

So I whipped out my iPhone
and with time delay on
took a snapshot to capture
the view this was from

And it came out just fine
as I think you'll agree
from the picture I've added
to this brief poetry

©Jemverse

Photo – St Mary de Haura, Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex, UK – Jempics

Sometimes II

Sometimes a biplane
will fly overhead
some of them yellow
and some of them red
Sometimes a seagull
will call on the breeze
as I sit in the sunshine
its warmth on my knees
Sometimes the sea
I will many hours view
for this vista has charm
and always feels new
Sometimes this beach hut
we've had now for years
will pull at heartstrings
and reduce me to tears
Sometimes I ponder
when pensive of mind
that this life is good
and for me very kind
And sometimes these words
I will craft into rhyme
to read and reflect
on from time to time

©Jemverse

Photo – me (Jem of Jemverse) outside Beach Hut 101 – Jempics

Ubi Sunt

As a boy these docks, this harbour
was a playground for adventure
fascination for a mystery
with no interest in debenture
Freedom then to roam and play
in summers with no ending
gave birth to a long love affair
with Sussex there befriending

But that was a long time ago
and though docklands here remain
the yearning for adventure
I have long learned to refrain
Transitory was that time
yet still there's vestige here
with sun-bleached memories of my youth
rekindled by the year

The harbour may have changed yet I
am still that boy at heart
and though six decades since have passed
we're scarcely now apart
Yes transitory the passing
yet somehow just the same
as every time I pass I hear
the calling of my name

©Jemverse

Photo – Shoreham Harbour from the ‘Albert Dock’, Sussex, UK – Jempics

An ‘Ubi Sunt’ is a verse form in which the poem or its stanzas begin with the Latin words “…Ubi Sunt…” (Where are…) or their equivalent in another language, and which has as a principal theme the transitory nature of things.

This Jemverse ‘Ubi Sunt’ is dedicated to Frank Hubeny and ‘Another Fearless Year’ (aka Linda Kruschker) from whom the inspiration to write it came.