Rollers ~ Second Edition (2024)
ROLLERS
Poetry Archive 2013
I
A Lifeguard pondered.
In the far distance, he watched a group of Surfers, Girls and Boys having the time of their lives. Ever watchful, ever vigilant, his relief had now taken up point at the station not far from where the South Pacific Ocean makes landfall.
He relaxes. Turning inland he catches your eye and answers your unspoken question.
Oliver, now on Station
Yes, this sun is merciless!
It's hot,
It's barren out here,
Behind me all you see is desert.
But beyond this brush
and in my eyeline
is the South Pacific Ocean.
We surf out there.
Me?
Yes of course.
But I've taken a break,
I’m off-station.
Oliver drove out in this.
We keep two,
One for back-n-forth,
One in Constant Readiness.
I've parked the wagon up…
have a slash, to be honest …
ditch the swimsuit
And into Jeans again.
Yep, you’re right there…
Man on a mission, defo!
In my back pocket
is the list of all the orders
the guys and girls want me to bring back
before sundown.
Yeah, sure ~ we'll have a party!
We always do mate!
This is Straya!
Feel free to join us.
Yeah, I’m Lachlan.
Good old Scots name
from way back.
Haha! Every time!!
No, Loch-lan
Not Lak-lan.
Use the back of your throat.
Yep, now you’ve got it!
My Gran is as Scots as they come,
So be thankful it’s me
and not my Gran! Hahaha.
II
Right now, I'm also enjoying
something else...
See it?
No, not there, THERE!
That’s it, you’ve got it.
That silver path
across the Silver Sea
That's what I love the most!
Nope! You’re not the first
to make two and two equal five.
So just to underline that,
I’m not religious.
But I’m now gonna confuse you even more…
My faith is resolute and unbreakable.
And faith takes me right out there!
Limitless,
Endless,
Makes me realise
I’ve no need to be fearful
of anything,
Not even infinity.
And if I needn’t be fearful
of that,
then stick and stones, sure,
may break my bones …
How does it go?
Names will never hurt me.
III
Right. Jump in. Sure.
And bring your mate too.
You can help me carry back
all the food and drink.
If you look out there,
you’ll see the team
doing today’s last great rollers.
They'll be hungry.
I am too!
And I know you guys are!
Say, those Girls…
You know them?
What? Girlfriends?
Oh! Blimey as my very
English Grandad says.
Right!
Drop the latch there and there.
That’s right.
That’s the extension for meds and stretcher.
Doubles up as a bus, too.
Go on boys!
Don’t be shy!!
Call them over.
This is Straya!
Lachlan
Lifeguard
ROLLERS LTKTW 23.10.2021 AdobeStock_276044705 2
25 July 2024
All Rights Reserved
LIVERPOOL
© 2024 Ian Bradley Marshall | © Kenneth Thomas Webb
First Written on 18 July 2013 and the first edition was republished on 10 July 2021.
Digital Artwork by KTW unless otherwise credited
Ken Webb is a writer and proofreader. His website, kennwebb.com, showcases his work as a writer, blogger and podcaster, resting on his successive careers as a police officer, progressing to a junior lawyer in succession and trusts as a Fellow of the Institute of Legal Executives, a retired officer with the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, and latterly, for three years, the owner and editor of two lifestyle magazines in Liverpool.
He also just handed over a successful two year chairmanship in Gloucestershire with Cheltenham Regency Probus.
Pandemic aside, he spends his time equally between his city, Liverpool, and the county of his birth, Gloucestershire.
In this fast-paced present age, proof-reading is essential. And this skill also occasionally leads to copy-editing writers’ manuscripts for submission to publishers and also student and post graduate dissertations.
