My Grandparents: Books and Memories

My Grandparents:  Books and Memories

“These are the books” my grandmother said,
Opening the cupboard
“You can have any you like”
And so I crouch down to browse
Through the hardback books-
Some historical, some fiction,
Some about trains, some about ships.

There’s old VHS tapes too-
One marked as being “Bed-knobs and Broomsticks”
A film I watched with my siblings and cousins
On several occasions.
They knew how to keep us entertained,
My grandparents, and remembering the film brings back
Memories- a little bittersweet perhaps, since we’re adults now.

Recalling trips to the local post office to buy sweets,
Walks in the woods, witches’ footpaths
The dragon’s nest,
(fictitious imaginings)
The swing attached to the tree,
And the tree-house my grandfather built.

I select a book-“Private London” it is-
To take and read- the books are old
Collected over a number of years,
And kept in dark places-
Each one seems to me to be
A hidden gem, the product of someone’s thoughts-
Mysterious, and mystery tales-
Novels set several centuries ago.
Classics such as “Robinson Crusoe”
And other works of fiction such as
“Mr Midshipman Hornblower”

So I take a few novels home to read,
Reading the books my grandparent’s read,
My grandparents entertained us as young children
And as adults leave us works of fiction.

MDC