An Ode to Walking with Probus
Tomorrow is National Poetry Day*
And I think it might be right to say
A few words in verse that more or less rhyme
Of Probus and walking and enjoying our time
When we are together on these organised trips
To check out the state of our knees and our hips
At places not distant – just one hour or two
And revel in friendships, some old and some new.
In arranging these outings, Brian always counts on
The help of three others who answer to John.
Brian leads our motley band
On monthly walks across the land
And once a year he agrees to look
And find a place where he can book
Rooms for a stay (with breakfast too)
And routes that are not hard to do.
John Williams sets a cracking pace
The rest of us can only chase.
An App on his phone records how far
He has walked to reach the bar.
When we are getting fairly near
He’s already on his second beer.
For sure it must be his ex Bobbies feet
That gets him first to the pub where we meet
John Fleck checks out the route for rises
And has a system for their sizes
From one to five the gradients go
Increasingly we puff and blow.
“Oh no! There are four Flecks today”
So some of us will stay away.
Now fewer slopes cause such a crisis
Since John got plantar fasciitis.
John Franklin is our maintenance man
On recces he carries all he can
Of tools like saws with very sharp edges
To make a way through bush and hedges
With slashing strokes all thing he clears
At stiles and gates we have no fears
Of stings from nettles or by brambles speared
For, by John they’ve been secateured.
One member, who shall nameless be,
Said “I would like to view the sea”.
Our team heard this with no great glee
Cos walking there is not easy
For coastal maps that one may view
Are often half of colour blue.
Now Stewart who requested this
Has opted out – Oh how remiss!
Let’s hope these walking holidays go on and on and on
So many thanks to Brian and John and John and John.
Tim Morgan
*Poetry Day, 6 October 2016
Andrew
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Brilliant! Nothing pedestrian about Tim’s poetry!
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