Get Lost

Get Lost

When the other kids tell you to get lost, 
go build a sand train in the middle of the park. 

Take spades, trowels, chisels, rasps;
buckets and pots for carrying water.

Coarse sand works best for chassis and boiler;
finer grains for the pistons, rods, axles. 

Find a hollowed out tree trunk for the funnel,
a large smooth marble to use as the dome.

Fashion the couplings from filigreed
willow leaves and oak branches. 

Raid the bottle bank for windows and dials.
Ignore raised eyebrows when you rip up benches.

Reforge the slide, swings and roundabout as rails.
Recycle fence planks and gravel as sleepers and ballast.

Let the finishing touch be the coke can whistle 
that sings your departure. And not a moment 

too soon, as the tender is crumbling
and the park-keeper's arrived, scratching his head.

~

Published in "Did I Tell You? 131 Poems for Children in Need"

Comments

[Rosemary Badcoe]

Ah yes, enjoyed this one!

[Brian Edwards]

Shari, if you're around, here's the other "Response."

[Shari-Lyn McArthur]

Thanks. Trackbacks now disabled, and reference deleted.