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 card game, 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