Myths, Lies and Old Age

By Bob Eccleston

Myths, Lies and Old Age: a collection of poems by Bob Eccleston.

Within these pages there are myths: some known, some newly created, some yet to occur and some which may prove to be reality.

There are vistas of old age from a viewpoint which does not preclude a future or a sense of humour; where the use of set forms indicates maturity and balance.

There are lies aplenty although different readers may have different views as to where they occur.

There is love and murder, hope and despair, tragedy and comedy; even nonsense.

There is a modicum of sex involving two amorous seals.

In short, there is variety and, hopefully, enjoyment.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Beaten Track Publishing
• Release date: May 16, 2019
• ISBN: 9781786453303

Bob Eccleston

Birmingham-born Bob moved to Southport in 2014 aged seventy. There, he rediscovered a love of poetry which had lain dormant for ten years. This was largely due to the flourishing literary and open mic scene in Merseyside. He now regards himself as a Mersey Brummie. He particularly wishes to acknowledge and thank the members of the Southport Writers' Group and the Fringe Writers and Poets for the assistance and encouragement given over the past five years.

Book preview

Myths, Lies and Old Age

Myths,

Lies

and

Old Age

A Collection of Poems

by Bob Eccleston

Beaten Track Logo

Beaten Track

www.beatentrackpublishing.com

Myths, Lies and Old Age

SMASHWORDS EDITION

First published 2019 by Beaten Track Publishing

Copyright © 2019 Bob Eccleston at Smashwords

https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/bobeccleston

All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent publisher.

The moral right of the author has been asserted.

ISBN: 978 1 78645 330 3

Beaten Track Publishing,

Burscough, Lancashire.

www.beatentrackpublishing.com

Within these pages there are myths: some known, some newly created, some yet to occur and some which may prove to be reality.

There are vistas of old age from a viewpoint which does not preclude a future or a sense of humour; where the use of set forms indicates maturity and balance.

There are lies aplenty, although different readers may have different views as to where they occur.

There is love and murder, hope and despair, tragedy and comedy; even nonsense.

There is a modicum of sex involving two amorous seals.

In short, there is variety and, hopefully, enjoyment.

Contents

The Way of the Poet

Selkie Encounter

The Bilvinise

The Centaur

Downhill on the Yellow Brick Road

The Wanderer

One for the Children

Egilou

Euriphes

The Legend of Morag El Moor

The Ballad of Morag El Moor

Encounter on Glaive Curran

Hear The Voices of The Old – They Are Your Future

Sonnet

Pantoum

Sestina

Villanelle

Free Verse

Dialect

Limerick

Cinquain

Haiku

Rondeau Redoublé

Portrait of an Old Man

The Old Man’s Tune

Tom O’Connor’s Wake

The Crocodile

The Easter Bunny

The Return

Simon’s Journey

The City

The Country

The Forest

The World

Time

SWALK

The Ragman’s Saga

The Ragman Wakes

The Ragman and The Headhunter

The Ragman’s Broadcast

The Ragman’s Last Meal

The Ragman Returns Home

The Unicorns

A Bad Leg Day (on a planet in a distant galaxy)

Ashilla

A Flaming of Dragons

The Final Scream

About the Author

Beaten Track Publishing

The Way of the Poet

Sitting outside Caffè Nero.

Sipping