My Medicine

Their lips are moving and their eyes meet mine

I nod and smile a semblance sublime

The King Laughs so I laugh back

I yearn for emptiness off the beaten track

I’m forty now was nineteen then

From boys to soldiers from soldiers to men

Some judge some pity some laugh some hate

Some threaten me with God and the pearly gate

The left say killer the right say hero

I say `LEAVE ME` my tolerance zero

I walk through the forest then sit all alone

For a minute I feel peace away from human scorn

I watch a small bird with grass in its beak

It’s lands by my foot so beautiful but meek

It fluffs out it feathers and looks straight in my eye

Why can such innocence cause a grown man to cry?

I’m assaulted back to reality by two low flying planes

Curled up in a ball back at Fitzroy again

That minute of peace seemed more like an hour

I will cherish those seconds like a sin cleansing shower

The woods getting darker wind making trees moan

I feel cold but no fear in the dark all alone

As I trudge back to my car a bird chirps from the mist

A smile breaks my lips while clutching the grass in my fist.

© Tony McNally

I am lucky to have the Lake District right on my doorstep and try to use its beauty and tranquillity as much as I can. I was up there again this week and I never fail to be in awe of the natural surroundings. I wrote the poem `Solace` on one of my many treks up there in Gods Country.