A poem in praise of the inner courtyard at my nursing home |
COURTYARDS AT BUPA #1 The inner courtyards at Bupa Eastwood Pleasing to the eyes of all who see them Surrounded by rooms of residents who would Without them gaze on featureless walls of brick and not Hear the calls Of the early morning magpie serenade to its frozen mate on the table Chatting and begging to one who is unable To come out to play He must go alone this day To catch the worms and fly aloft but not forgetting As each morning he is back to try to break the spell Seems a witches wand has stopped the movement Of the magpie and the cheeky puppy as he dashed Towards his bowl not heeding calls or smell The meerkats at another window their frantic scrambling And squeaking unheard and unseen As stand and gaze inside At something which has caught their eye so keen The majestic bird of paradise flowers Their orange and purple hold the power To stun in itself as people see it And in the season when colours fade Caught the gaze of person inside who at a glance Just thought it was an emu's head it had seen All manner of flowers each season come and go As is their want and each have been To perhaps fading eyes a blessing Below the sweeping sails giving shade So that plants and people need not be so shy To brave the heat and give them respite To feel the gentle breezes and see the butterflies alight On flowers then flutter on The tempered sunlight bathes upon All below in the courtyard. Coral Boucher |