What an absolute treat,

My loved one sitting opposite me

As we ate our dinner.

Kathleen singing for us on the player,

An absolute joy.

Then came a song,

A song I had heard many times,

But this time the fork stopped

And I was in absolute awe.

How could a voice sing like that?

Absolute perfection.

Absolute emotion.

I could do nothing but listen,

Listen in absolute wonder

At this song.

The sound penetrating my heart,

Reaching my soul.

The tears started to run,

Run down my face,

As her sound enraptured me.

It always has,

And always will,

But tonight it seemed different,

It spoke so powerfully to me.

My world had stopped in those moments,

As Kathleen came into my soul.

They race down the road

On their steed made of steel,

Straight through their hair

The wind they do feel.

 

Going faster and faster

On the road from their past,

Flying further away

From that which had passed.

 

Into the future of their new life,

Speeding away on their mighty bike,

Going quickly to their wherever,

To their wherever, wherever they like.

“That Old boy down the road”.

I can remember my Grandad saying it,

I can remember my Mum saying it,

And now even I say it,

But what we always forget

Is that that old boy down the road,

Is younger than us.

We go through our lives

Experiencing each day,

That experience adding to our knowledge,

Knowledge of our lives.

Those experiences become part of us,

They can never be taught.

 

As we get older we look back,

Look back at what has been.

As age increases we look forward,

Look forward to what might be.

 

Remember though where we live,

We live in the now.

Now is the most important time,

The most important time in our lives.

So live in the now,

Now will never come again.

 

Pure bliss,

Sitting in the coolest part of the house

Away from the increasingly hot summer,

Coffee by my side,

Loved one beside me,

Bach playing gently,

Wafting his wondrous tones

Into our souls.

Sitting there reading,

Reading a good book,

Pure bliss.

The eyes open from a deep dream filled sleep,

Dreams of joys and wonders that had filled his life.

His life’s work, now at an end, work he had enjoyed

But now completed, leaving time for complete relaxation.

Time to do the things he wants and wanted.

The things that became rushed while at work

Now able to be done with ease, and time to spare.

That time for a gentle stroll in the park,

Enjoying the open space but filled with children’s laughter.

The café by the River where he stops for coffee

Looking at the water, gently gliding by.

The slow walk around the town,

Looking in shops, talking to friends he meets on the way,

No hurry to get away, no pressure.

Lunch beckons, so into the pub he goes

A place where he is known as a gentle soul

Who has time for everybody, and his company enjoyed by all.

A pint, maybe two to wash down a simple repast.

Chatting to and laughing with friends.

Lunch over so back home for a rest.

Changed into comfortable relaxing clothes

Music fills the air as he settles down to read.

The rest changes to a short nap.

Awaking again the music still a joy,

He listens to the notes entering his mind,

So relaxed, so happy? So alone!

His wife now the angel seen in his dreams.

Their life so happy together,

But now he is on his own.

He must move on though

Until he at last comes to her again,

In that place where loved ones meet forever.

But at the moment he is doomed to be:

A man of infinite leisure.

There I was, sitting on my cloud

God floated by and looked at me

“You look bloody miserable!” He said

He pulled up a cloud and sat next to me

“What’s the trouble?” he asked

“You are!” I replied

“Now what have I done?”

“You have taken my lover from me!”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Well her mind is closing.

She is not the person I knew”

“What do you mean by that” he asked

“Well all her life she has worshipped you

Sang your praises.

And what to you do?

You take her voice from her!”

“It was only to protect her” He said

“She could have lost her voice completely!”

“It may well be that way, but singing was her life!”

“She has other things; she has you!”

“But you are even taking that from her!

Her mind is closing into a dementia world

Which is starting to keep me out” I replied

“What has she done to deserve that”

“She is still with you in body” he uttered

“Yes she may well be

But she can hardly walk

I have to take her in a wheelchair now”

“At least you are fit enough to help her” he replied

“But what if I am not, what happens then?”

“There are people who will help her”

“I vowed ‘In sickness and in health’ in front of you

Are my vows not sacred to you?”

“Of course they are, as they are to you” he said

“So why are you punishing her

Or are you punishing me!!”

“No I a not punishing you

It is a test, to see how strong you are”

“Why are you testing me?

It seems like a punishment”

God got up from his cloud and started to drift away

He looked back and said

“You will see, you will see”