Bluebell by name and bluebell by nature
the walk was the best in a while
Seven miles wandering the countryside pure
in Sussex to bring us a smile
Five of us this time, numbers have swelled
the family out here together
with mud underfoot and grey of the sky
determined whatever the weather
We took in the woods with the blue and the green
passing paddocks and ponds on the way
before walking the tracks yesteryear provides still
the proud Sussex Bluebell Railway
And our pleasure was crowned with a glory right there
as a train puffered by with a song
the rhythm of steam and the clatter of wheels
it passed us as we walked along
So to the Green Man at Hosted Keynes where
footsore we raised glasses with cheer
A walk we'll remember as special indeed
which long in our hearts we'll hold dear
[The Bluebell Railway is an 11-mile heritage steam railway line in Sussex which operates between Sheffield Park and East Grinstead (on the mainline) with intermediate stations at Horsted Keynes and Kingscote. It boasts over 30 steam locomotives and 150 carriages and wagons, most of them pre-1939].
And from high above Worthing
Victorian houses reaching down to the sea
with the tower of the Dome just catching the sun
crying out for a picture from me
But the image itself needed more to explain
the 'je ne sais quoi' of that time
looking down on the vista so often seen
and from up here looking so fine
So I added some words that seemed about right
to capture the essence right there
of a view I don't think I've seen before once
so obliged in these lines to now share
From Rodmell via Southease, a loop of three miles
as the warmth returned once again
Us four with our boots
'neath the blue of a sky
walking to keep ourselves sane
There were sheep in the rape munching blithely away
and cows lowing there in the field
as the Ouse on the ebb
flowed out to the sea
in the heart of the Sussex Weald
This circuital wander, just enough for us four
to brush all the cobwebs away
and see us all well
for a marvellous time
on this lovely warm late April day
From the Saltings 'cross old oyster beds
the town of Shoreham lay
steeped in ancient history
and yet familiar today
The Norfolk (then suspension) bridge
to fore of course long gone
and the brewery chimneys now replaced
by newer builds upon
The High Street of the new town
with St Mary's to the rear
a town that lives in history
which we all hold so dear
[Photo – from a postcard in the author’s collection – circa. 1912. Shoreham-by-Sea viewed from ‘The Saltings’ bank of what is now the new Mackley’s sea defence wall adjacent to the Houseboat community on the river Adur; Shoreham Beach side]
Walked a five mile loop in a landscape
aliens seemed to have sculpted
strange tall structures there on the beach
descriptive words here prompted
The sun shone bright in April warmth
on slow receding tide
as we four wandered on the sand
and those tall structures spied
Erosion with the mighty hand
of nature's winter force
slamming tidal waves into
the old wood there of course
And yet on crystal days
like today at Climping here
this sculpting of a beachfront
brought to us four joy and cheer
The sun shone on Good Friday morn
as we went walking for some fun
Two sisters, father and a dog
as this good day has just begun
Started in fair Arundel
then through the castle ground
up through the South Stoke country park
where marvellous things were found
Views that took our breath away
with skies of deepest blue
this was a time to revel in
which we all four there knew
As it happened the eight miles we planned
turned into something more
though none of us we minded
with the wondrous things we saw
But the Black Rabbit pub it was
a welcome thing to see
as down the river path we came
footsore and thirsty we
Some fourteen miles of Sussex
for a walk which was the best
though when back home for buns and tea
we welcomed then the rest
Dog walkers walking with plenty of dogs
some running free some on leads
the river meandering down to the sea
with ducks hiding there in the reeds
A grey sky above but the chill is now gone
and there's no wind at all here today
There's even a hint of blue through the cloud
out there in the spread of the bay
The fishermen's cottages so often filmed
are prominent there on the cliff
as we with best foot forward walk
with legs from winter, stiff
And this is a day of the magical kind
the ones with a 'je ne sais quoi'
for joie de vivre, for zest and much more
the one's to shout loud 'et voila!'
We walked from Berwick Station
hardy throng against the wind
forging through the countryside
no need here for chagrin
For this was long awaited
a walk for birthday treat
in a February Sussex
with the snowdrops looking sweet
A few miles along the Pilgrim Path
to Charleston House near Firle
with smiles of cheer on all our minds
and on our lips a curl
Brighton pier was glowing blue
as the waves fell to the shore
as we all six up on the prom
watched it and asked for more
And that we got in spades
as we always do right here
in Brighton on the Sussex coast
beside its famous pier
Even precipitation didn't
much get in the way
as the beauty was so evident
at the evening of this day
...all about me and my life in words. I write most days, carrying an ideas book around in which I capture a word snapshot of life around me. So there's a lot here about Sussex and the sea and anything else I see that inspires.
The pictures are mine too. Some taken to match a poem; some poems written to match a pic; others chosen because they work well with words written.
Jemverse is life in words. Hope you enjoy the reading as much as I enjoy the writing...