A Farmers Lament Poem by Owen Cullimore

Deep in the country side
Lies Bentwood Farm, a secluded place
Standing against the elements
A bleak old farmhouse lacking in grace
Been in the Farmers family for over three hundred years
Down through a few generations
A mixture of hard work, blood and tears
Now owned by old Farmer Bryant
A hardy type of man
He and his wife Jenny
Do the best that they can
Though a desolate landscape
Its place full of love and fun
With their old Sheepdog Jess
A beer and a gun
Cows always need milking, so up with a lark
The cowsheds full of noisy cattle
Followed by old Jesse who would awaken the dead with her bark
Which she does to remind her master
Of his sole task ahead
To get the cows milked and out into the field
So the sheep in the meadow can be fed
Meanwhile in the Farmhouse
Jennie was baking Bread and Pies
Ready for her husbands one o'clock lunch
Oh Dear she sighs
The Bread was ok and looked good enough to eat
But the pies were a bit hard and so did not look very appetizing
But she scraped of the black bits that sat on the top
They did not look well, which was not so surprising
But onward and upward she thought to herself
Awaiting the arrival of Tom her husband of fifty years
Who will be hungry for breakfast after his hard work this morning
Just as she had always done through much Blood Sweat and Tears
For Old Tom had been a farmer for all of his life
Keeping Cows, Sheep and chickens and an old Tamworth pig
With Ruby his wife always smiling by his side
On their farm in the Cotswold's which was not very big
Then came the big winter with loads of Snow and Ice
Keeping the animals safe became the name of the game
Had them all bedded down in the Barns for over six weeks
But Tom and Jenny managed to feed them all just the same
As Spring approached the weather relented
And life on the farm returned to its usual stride
So now was the time to reminisce on their life together
As they sat and drank tea and remembered their wedding day with pride
As they smiled at each other across the kitchen table holding hands
They looked at the picture on the Mantelpiece above the roaring fire
Of themselves and their five children their real pride and joy
who all kept in contact weekly because they loved Mum and Dad
They had four lovely daughters and one solitary boy
As they sat drinking their tea it was a lovely sight to see
Two people in love for all of those years
And I am sure you will say that's how it should be.