Swan Meadow Road Poem by John Carter Brown

I'm taking a walk
down Swan Meadow road;
I'm older and wiser than when
I last came this way,
so just for a day,
I'll walk in my footsteps again.

The road and the river
both turn as they run;
As a youngster, just older than ten,
I passed by the bridge
to sit on the ridge,
and think on the workings of men.

The mill still stands by,
but never did I think
that I would be earning my bread
in it's cotton-filled rooms,
'mongst the laps and the looms,
to keep all my family fed.

No, now as I keenly
reflect on that time,
down Swan Meadow road, decades past;
With hindsight it seems
a mere handful of dreams,
and by them that my lot was then cast.

No glory for me,
my path up ahead
lay squarely with brawn and not brain;
My innocence ruled,
by this I was fooled,
but knew not, so couldn't complain.

So, I'll retrace my steps
via Swan Meadow road -
such a regal and sweet-sounding name -
And I have few regrets,
life just slipped through the nets,
but it's only myself I can blame.

(Written March 2014)