On just such a day

So the rain fell
         and the river rose
and ducks swam freely
         in the road

The sun that day
         was an afterthought
almost forgotten
         behind the dense cloud

A young child
         in a pushchair
waved his arms for joy
         when he saw the ducks

There was lilac blossom
         in the gardens
I spotted a red-breasted robin
         scavenging for food

and across the river
         I could see the park
with its monument
         to those who fell

in Spain in defence
         of the Republic :
so many memorials
         to so many fallen

in so many wars
         That night the moon
shone full – exemplary
         in the black sky littered

with its tiny pinpricks
         of silver starlight
and the wind changed
         blew up from the south

Anything might happen
         -or so I thought- in this world
where so often the easiest lessons
         are so hard to learn

John Lyons