The Silver River

 

 Jacket, shirt and shoes,

 his socks and trousers

neat on the bank;

 a small crowd watching from the bridge.  

silver river running  

 He was coming from a game of cards, late,

 the winnings in his pocket.

 There had been a woman,

 they had visited the priest.  

silver river running  

 But that’s long ago now.

 He worked the farm;

 a good worker, his neighbours said,

 always busy with the tractor. 

silver river running 

 He lived with his mother,

 who cooked his meals and managed the money.

 Now she was a great farming woman,

 everyone agreed. 

silver river running 

I have a photograph of him holding a child,

he didn’t look comfortable;

he sat for a while in the garden

but didn’t stay long. 

silver river running