In honour of bonfire or Guy Fawkes Night, I am reproducing below my poem “Catherine Wheel”, which can be found in “The Selected Poems of K Morris”:
Catherine Wheel
Sometimes I feel
Like a Catherine wheel;
My words as sparks,
Lighting the dark.
But who in December
Remembers
The fifth of November?
—
“The Selected Poems of K Morris” is available as a Kindle download or in paperback from Amazon, https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07WW8WXPP/ and https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07WW8WXPP/.
November 5th is Guy Fawkes or Bonfire Night here in the UK. Below are 2 of my poems with a fireworks/Bonfire Night element to them. The first is entitled “Catherine Wheel” and the second “The Dark”.
Both poems can be found in my collection, “Lost In The Labyrinth Of My Mind”, (http://moyhill.com/lost/).
—
Sometimes I feel
Like a Catherine wheel,
My words as sparks,
Lighting the dark.
But who in December
Remembers
The fifth of November?
—
Closing my curtain
I shut out the night
And the fireworks
Celebrating something
But precisely what
I am uncertain.
While beyond my drapes
The dark
Patiently waits …
Image license obtained Copyright: mab0440 / 123RF Stock Photo
In honour of Bonfire or Guy Fawkes night, (November 5th), I am linking to some of my poems touching on that occasion:
Sometimes I feel
Like a Catherine wheel,
My words as sparks,
Lighting the dark.
But who in December
remembers
The fifth of November?
—
In the United Kingdom, Bonfire or Guy Fawkes Night takes place on 5 November. The above was written on 9 December 2015.
As I sit at my desk I can hear the distant pounding of guns. Oops, for guns read fireworks!
Personally I can take or leave fireworks. I understand the attraction to children and the role fireworks play in celebrations such as Chinese New Year and, of course today’s event, Guy Fawkes or Bonfire Night. Unfortunately my guide dog, Trigger is not so relaxed in his view of fireworks. Like most animals he hates them.
On Saturday evening I had popped out for a couple of pints in my favourite local. On the way home heaven was rent asunder by the sound of fireworks going off. A few bangs and Trigger starts to shake, however a continuous stream of explosions causes him to freeze, begin to tremble violently and to seek shelter in the nearest building. Fortunately, when the noise started we where passing my local Sainsburys and Trigger almost dragged me in there so keen was he to escape what must, to a dog with very sensitive hearing be an incredibly distressing experience. After purchasing a few items (I didn’t really need them but felt, being in the supermarket that I should buy something) I telephoned a taxi so as to avoid Trigger having to experience the racket outside. I live some 10 minutes walk from the supermarket but, by the time the taxi arrived and conveyed Trigger and I home some 40 minutes had passed.
Today I chose to work from home in order to avoid Trigger being subjected to fireworks again. I took him out at lunchtime for a walk and he is now curled up in his bed. Unlike some animals Trigger is fine inside where the sound of exploding fireworks don’t bother him but he won’t go out again this evening, the explosions would only distress him.
I don’t wish to be a killjoy but it strikes me that fireworks should be limited to a few times a year and, possibly to designated displays only. At present, even when November 5th ends people will, no doubt still be letting off fireworks into late November/early December. Then, of course we have New Year’s Eve so Trigger won’t have a complete rest from fireworks until mid to late January. There surely must be a better way than this.
K Morris - Poet 