The Golden Mile: A Book of Poems

By Brian Ward

The Golden Mile is a book of poems but it is more than that: it is a love story. It speaks of one man’s love first of his brave father who died, when the author was a teenager, of disabilities caused by his service in the Battle of the Atlantic during World War II and then of his own family.
He dedicates the book to his late father’s memory. He retraced his father’s footsteps along the Golden Mile that leads up to Edinburgh Castle seventy years after he father did so during a break in hostilities. He writes about that movingly in the title piece in the collection. Most of us can point to a favourite song, place, scent or possession that triggers memories of a loved one who has, as Banjo Patterson describes, gone over the range.
He introduces you to his own family one at a time. He calls Lesley, his wife, the mother of his three children and grandmother of their five grandchildren by the affectionate names of Madre, La Madre and the Contessa as well as her real name. Their adventures are hilarious and at the same time heart rending.
Navigating the removal of a cheap bead his young daughter placed up her nose - Heaven knows why? - one minute and coping with stage four breast cancer the next, takes you on a roller-coaster ride which our author captures brilliantly in this collection.
At a time when men are asked to express their feelings our author needs no coaching. He uses the “l’ word frequently, filially and unexpectedly. He shows us that if you say what you feel and feel what you say, there is a lot to be gained by everyone.
If you are a thinker, a believer in the golden rule and a lover of people, this is definitely a book for you.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris AU
• Release date: Aug 31, 2019
• ISBN: 9781796005981

Brian Ward

Ward has been a freelance writer for the Enterprise Record (Daily Newspaper in Chico, California), The Student Insurgent (Monthly University of Oregon Newsletter) and KD Magazine (Quarterly University of Oregon Magazine). Ward wants to marry a Latina Salsa instructor from either Mexico, Argentina, Brazil or Colombia. He enjoys travel, writing, speaking Spanish and playing disc golf. Ward's favorite job so far has been teaching rollerblading in Ixtapa, Mexico.

Book preview

Copyright © 2019 by Brian Ward.

Library of Congress Control Number:   2019912537

ISBN:       Hardcover                     978-1-7960-0600-1

                 Softcover                       978-1-7960-0599-8

                 eBook                             978-1-7960-0598-1

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

The Forward by Lesley Ward, © Lesley Ward 2019, appears with the permission of Lesley Ward.

The image of HMS ARAWA, © Crown Copyright IMW, appears with the permission of the Imperial War Museum, Lambeth Road, London SE1 6HZ T [phone], W iwm.org.uk

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Rev. date: 11/08/2019

Xlibris

1-800-455-039

www.Xlibris.com.au

794107

CONTENTS

FAMILY

Father

The Golden Mile

Sunday Morning

Nat

Ode To Nat (1)

Ode To Nat (2)

Beads Up Your Nose

The Olden Days

The Youngest Child

Today

The Engagement

The Marriage

La Belle Violette

Violette

Millie

Gunga Din

The Zephyr

Colors

Ducky Dear

Sybil

Expectations

What About Me

Easter Sunday

Easter In Melbourne

Dadda Don’t Slam The Front Door!

The Limbo Incident

Punch Fear In The Face

The Little Red Tool Box

CUPACRUTCHAMUNGA LAND

Cupacrutchamunga Land

Strangular’s Wedding

Strangi’s Kids

Young Trapplejack

Undestanding Misty

Mothers Day In New Trapplejar

The Trappisage Secrets

The Mayor

The Kreel

Mungafest

OVERSEAS

Excuse!

How Mucha?

Bella Regazza

Speaka D’italiano

Trenni

Journeys

Arno

Questions

Italia

Best In Show

Isola Bella

Simone

The View

Paris In Winter

Meadowmont

Nuptials At Chapel Hill

Newcastle-On-Tyne

The Callum Road

Katie Mckenzie

The Irish Bards

The Peaty Bog

The Barrow Man

A Limerick From Limerick

A Lady From Limerick

Thanksgiving

Woodside

The Gardens At Kew

The New Emperor

New England

55 Avenue Victor Hugo

Madame Odile Masquelier

Old Prag

AUSTRALIANA

Home

Survival

Australia Felix

Chatsworth House

The Crimson Rosella

The Eastern Rosella

The Wallaby Is On The Run

The Blue Hour

On The Death Of Phillip Hughes

Phoenix

Lorne

Sweet Lornie

The Seaside Glitterati

Wallenbrey

The Sale

DAY DREAMING

Awards

The Dentist

The Run

The Exorcism

The Mask

Fifty Years

Fathers Day

The Albatross

Ward 6 ES

Crook

Limbies Talking

Seventy One

Berado’s

Providence

Let’s Remember

Innocence

The Ox

LESLEY

The Last Bouquet

The Veil

Mary Kip

Thinking Of Lesley

Mumma E Shoppa

Madre

Chris

FRIENDS

Sheeds

Christine

Sister Sister

G.B.F.

The Team

Forty Years

Rosemary

SONNETS

Sonnet (1) The Mistress

VILLANELLE

Forsake Him Not–A Villanelle

The Eighth Decade–A Villanelle

The Beast–A Villanelle

The Bard From Bunyah–A Villanelle

Lesley Of Carmel–A Villanelle

Stella Amelia–A Villanelle

The Love Villanelle

PANTOUM

Pantoum Of The Realization Of Irrelevance

Pantoum On The Acceptance Of Ageing

Pantoum Of Frustation

Pantoum On Anxiety

Pantoum Of Isolation

SESTINA

Sestina Earth

DEDICATION

For my father

Desmond James Ward

31 October 1917 to 14 July 1963

(Only 16 years together)

Who served in the Battle of the Atlantic

on the Armed Cruiser HMS ARAWA

28 August 1940 to 24 July 1941.

HMS%20Arawa.tif

HMS ARAWA © Crown Copyright. IWM

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I have learned that getting anything into print is a team effort. There are many people in my life about whom I care deeply yet I do not mention them by name in any of my efforts in this book. My late mother Mary Frances Ward, for example and my beloved sister Jennifer Anne Ward are two that spring to mind.

But they are both very much who I have become so they are there fully on show. Writing poetry is a stream of conscience type of experience for me rather than a carefully planned plot. If it were so, they would be centre and square in print. I am afraid that these omissions must be added to the list of deficiencies that will come my way. Still there is life in the old dog yet and with a bit of encouragement there is still time for these important people to enter from stage left and land centre and square in my next effort.

My thanks to Lesley, Madre, La Madre, my Contessa! Not only did she offer so much content inspiration, she is linked to most people, experiences and events in such an intimate way. It was she who kept urging me to do this thing.

Natalie and Joel Stringer and their gorgeous daughters Alice and Amelia have been fertile contributors to my collection. I miss them terribly up there in Sydney but the Contessa and I take pride in their immense achievements.

Simon David Ward, the standard bearer of the family name, was more of a reader than a talker when he was growing up but he soon made up for it. I sincerely hope he takes up the pen before too long. It would be a shame if the Victorian Young Writer of the Year, in the 1980’s did not sharpen his pencil as an adult. Maybe he might receive the batten and chronicle the adventures of young Charlie and Grayson and family life with Georgina.

Thanks also to Emily Claire Pattenden (our baby) for the stories she provided and to husband Christopher for giving us baby Violette who features with gusto in the anthology (most likely an omen, if you get my drift).

My friends over the years have helped weave a most durable blanket that has kept my family warm. Thank you for your friendships and for the inspiration to write. I hope you enjoy the references to you tucked away in verse: some obvious and some a little more subtle.

To Dennis Francis from Xlibris, my publisher, a big thanks to you and your team, for getting me across the line.

Finally, I am grateful to the Imperial War Museum in London for granting me permission to reproduce the image of HMS ARAWA, the Heavy Cruiser that did its duty during the Battle of the Atlantic with my Dad on board. It means a lot to have him there, right on show.

Brian Ward, Melbourne, 29 July 2019

FORWARD BY LESLEY WARD

In less than twelve months, Brian and I reach a milestone (not to be confused with a millstone). God willing we will celebrate our Golden Jubilee. It will be a family affair- that is our way. Maybe with that in mind or, possibly now that he has the time, I am a willing witness to a flurry of activity on Brian’s part. He has taught himself to type and to his credit he has produced this collection of his poems compiled over nearly 50 years.

His early efforts may be naïve but they bring back fond memories of times of yore. I still smile when I read Sunday Morning, a poem that captures the events of any Sunday morning in a home with three young children on board. There we were; a family