Battle Lines Poem by Tony Jolley

We got more poetry than we bargained for:
Poetry as per the programme;
Poetry under the Plane trees;
Poetry conjuring other places,
Other times,
Other insights
Through other eyes.

Yes, all that and more
As the soft, stone façade
Glowed the warm jaune-crème
Of a quiet understanding
Borne of generations of learning,
And, en face,
Upstart acres of glass
Glowered back their pretensions
With an assurance
Only the arrogance of youth may afford.

Between these battle lines,
Oblivious to their meagre histories and vanities,
Nature was quietly busy
Writing her elegant, eternal poetry
Upon the wind
In fresh, green symphony,
Strolling and stroking its way
Through the forest on my forearms,
Stealing me away from listening,
To writing:
Recording the history of the briefest of moments
Perhaps no-one else noticed.

More than I bargained for too.

Stephanos, thank you.