Nice comments by Brian and DJM regarding the standard of articles and serials published. They serve to amuse, entertain and educate us. Top notch indeed and I too am certain no other blog can match what is produced by our Puffin Community.
Thank you to all writers over the years and an especially big thank you to SB for founding, orchestrating and generally making the blog a great source of reference.
As always new contributors are needed to feed the beast – everyone has a tale to tell – don’t be shy, give it a go it can be very rewarding.
I like to think of us as comrades and the point about rallying round is well made. He/she ain’t heavy, he/she is my brother. I thank you all.
I have become more aware recently of that aspect of modern medicine which concentrates on the symptoms more than the underlying causes/
Reading a piece by an oriental doctor (did not give him a name) he wrote rationally about the interaction between drugs and treatments and the rather cavalier prescribing of pills as a first resort. Of course the payment system encourages this and Big Pharma is the driver of the tendency to promote pills for profit.
It is simply no longer possible to believe much of the clinical research that is published or to rely on the judgement of trusted physicians or authoritative medical guidelines as Foxoles evidences by Dr Malcolm Kendrick.
Thank you Tachybaptus and Brian from Berks for your poems.! All good stuff.
My head is always buzzing with sayings, poems and songs. I played again the recording of Judith Durham singing Danny Boy – a bit dusty in here. Gives me goosebumps listening to her. She is my all time favourite female singer.
Have been struggling with various sites trying to make a visa application. I know we have many programmers amongst us – why is it all so complicated to do anything now when it was pretty simple in the ‘old days.’
Passwords, OTPs, ‘phone calls, Captcha etc, it takes ages to find the appropriate site and get past the login/create an account rigmarole before you can tackle the real reason for being online.
With a bit of luck I shall be orff to pastures new fairly soon and have decided to make this the last missive. I am getting a bit mused out and we need to make room for others to contribute.
I have a whisky and lemonade in my hand – SLAINTE and may your Gods go with you.
* * *
Crying at 56
I never really knew you Mother dear,
you were put away and me in my fifth year,
I knew there wasn’t scope,
and there was so little hope
of a family life the way that things appear.
I remember that night very long ago.
when we were took away and it was so
disturbing at the time,
but no reason nor no rhyme
was apparent to a little boy of four.
The fibs they fed me many, many years,
but up to now I couldn’t find the tears,
can I blow kisses to the wind
sure, it wasn’t me that sinned
will you feel them on your cheek
and give back the love I seek,
will you know me, will you love me
Mother dear?
The years that you spent shut up in that place,
‘cos I know the life you had you couldn’t face:
we used to visit you,
I’m not sure you even knew,
who we were, or why, or when,
O Mother dear.
The time that you were breathing out your last,
through all the pain did you recall the past
and the boys that loved you so,
we are men now don’t you know,
we all love you, we have missed you,
Mother dear.
You hadn’t much of joy,
all I remember as a boy,
is your face, your coat and how you nursed me through
a time when I was ill, but I still have thoughts of you
in the years since you have gone,
my Mother dear.
Now the tears have come at last
and I can grieve for times long past,
and I think that soon enough I shall be free
from the thoughts that haunted me,
of the might, what if, could be
and I know I miss you dreadful,
Mother dear
© Gillygangle 2026
