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These
poems were written by pupils from schools in Caerleon. They appeared
in a book published in 1969 by Monmouthshire Education Committee,
entitled "There's Rosemary". Presumably copies of
the book were sent to schools all over the county, the text on
the title page says:
"The Monmouthshire
Education Committee hope you will enjoy this book, now and in
the future. The authors are your contemporaries in Monmouthshire
schools in 1969, the year of the investiture of the Prince of
Wales."
Some of the poems speak of changes already in progress others
hint of changes to come…
We'll start with this piece, though, which reflects on continuity,
something very evident in Caerleon which has been occupied continuously
since Roman times.
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NEVER
A YEAR
Never a year without churchbells ringing,
Never a year without Christians singing,
Never a year without Christmas corner,
Never a year without a mourner,
Never a year without snow falling down,
Never a year without a circus clown,
Never a year without Springtime coming,
Never a year without bumble bees humming,
Never a year without Autumn leaves falling,
Never a year without people calling,
Never a year without hop-picking season,
Never a year without a reason,
Never a year will go astray,
Always a year will come this way.
STEPHANIE LOUCH
Caerleon Endowed
Junior School.
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SCHOOL
Some children like school,
Others detest it.
Some children use their heads,
While others rest it.
Some children have the ruler,
Others have the cane.
Some children get their sums right,
While others try again.
Some children are bad writers,
Others write quite well.
Some children work their hardest,
While others await the bell.
DIANE MATTHEWS
Caer!eon Endowed
Junior School.
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STEAM
LOCOMOTIVE
Clouds of smoke fill the air,
Hissing steam is everywhere;
The gripping sound of steel on steel
Slowly starts to turn the wheels.
Majestically it gathers speed
While fireman sweats, shovelling feed;
The master of the iron road
Easily pulls its heavy load.
Soon this will be in the past,
No more we'll hear the whistle blast,
The diesels now are in their stride,
The course of progress we must abide.
STEPHEN EVANS
Caerleon Secondary
School.
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WALES
Deep valleys, high mountains,
Green fields, rushing fountains,
Golden beaches, rocky coast:
These are things of which we boast.
Nature gave us all these things.
The south we've ruined with industrial strings;
The north unspoilt, a playground yet;
The west, a haven for the leisurely set.
A mixture for pride that never fails
This is the land that we call Wales.
SUSAN PENROSE
Caerleon Secondary
School.
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TREES
Standing straight and tall,
Flowing and dancing
With the wind,
Waltzing and curtsying,
Moving elegantly,
Proud and peaceful,
Tiny green leaves
Twinkling in the sunlight,
The sun throwing shadows on the trunk,
Ivy creeping up the bark,
Leaves of rich velvety green,
Furry and shiny,
Their broad limbs swaying
By a glistening river bed.
The sky, powdery and fluffy
And as soft as satin.
The tree sways to a
Silent stillness.
SUSAN CHIRNSTDE
Caerleon Secondary
School.
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THE
CASTLE
It stands upon the hill so grand,
Surveying all the distant land;
If only it could tell a tale
Of days when gallant knights set sail.
The towers in the sunshine gleam
So peacefully, as if in a dream;
But years ago the barons fought,
For all this land was theirs, they thought.
But now this castle's work is done,
With all its battles lost and won:
The joys and tears it must have seen!
But still it stands, just like a Queen.
RUTH DAVIES
Caerleon Secondary
School.
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WALES
- A BLEAK PICTURE
Wales is a place thought bleak and bare,
With only a coal tip here and there,
With slag tips scattered all around,
Destroying the pleasant verdant ground.
Songs have been made up about this Wales,
With its bleak, black hills and adjacent dales,
With laughter and fun and a pit-head song
(We Welsh could sing for you all day long).
But things aren't like they were years ago;
Things have happened, as we all well know:
Disasters above and disasters below,
Men have died and men have fought,
Some have learned and others taught
About the pit and all around
Above, below and on the ground.
The things it's done! But above all else,
The men it's killed, the pain they've felt.
Despite all this, our Wales survives,
Trying to forget the many lost lives:
The Welsh are strong and very proud men,
Men who live to fight on again.
ALAN SHEPHERDSON
Caerleon Secondary
School.
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