Prose

I have a strong interest in the English language due to my mother. She was quite concerned I would be at a disadvantage not having English as my first language at home and ensured I did well in English by religiously getting me to practice my spelling every morning during breakfast. As a consequence, I excelled at school in English, much to the dismay of my peers whose native language it was!

I love reading and from there I developed an enjoyment of poetry and began dabbling with prose in my late teens as a means of self expression. It helped me deal with life (and death) issues at that time.

Losing myself in poetry was a coping mechanism with feeling different, especially compared to my three sisters. For example, they were not interested in going to University - I was; they were happy to marry young - I wasn't; they all started their families at a very young age - I couldn't think of anything more horrifying, all that responsibility so young; they were content to go camping - I wanted to explore the world and different cultures, not just what was in my backyard and readily accessible.

Poetry will always remain a strong interest despite not having the regular inspiration to create much of my own work in more recent years. Do enjoy reading my compositions to date.

• My Poems
  
  My collection of poems date back as far as 1979 through to 2007. I write when the mood takes me although I have not had a spare moment to indulge in this as much as I might wish.
• Ode to 60 Years of Marriage
  
  A poem I wrote especially for my parents in celebration of their journey in life which has shaped their 60 years of marriage.
• Thank You
  
  Together with the poem I wrote for my parents 60th Wedding Anniversary, I also put together a keepsake book for my parents which contained thoughts and reflections from every member of our family. This one is my contribution to that book.