Bill Boiler Poem by Francis Duggan

Have you ever been at the door of despair
And to you life has been anything but fair
Bill Boiler has been there many times in his life
In his many struggles with his inner strife.

So often he hears strange voices in his head
And often he feels he'd be better off dead
A man in his fifties his better years gone
But his lust for life helps him to keep keeping on.

His huge cross in life has been heavy to bear
But sad to say people like him are not rare
Their peace they do find in the quiet of the grave
But Bill soldiers on he must be very brave.

Strange voices in his head he often does hear
A man who loves life though death he does not fear
He has struggled with a mental illness since he was seventeen
He battles on bravely though hard times he has seen.