Park bench

• Elyse Grant, Grade 8
• Poetry
• 2005

I sit on the park bench reading my newspaper,
When I realise my daughter has cut it up for her school paper.
So I put the newspaper to my side
And just watch the world go passing by.

A family picnic, some boys trying to fly a kite,
An artist painting, some girls on the swings gaining full flight.
Two girls making daisy chains, while their older sisters sun bake,
Some little ones trying to catch butterflies, some boys climbing trees-I hope the branches don’t break!

Some girls with their skipping ropes, a parent with her child feeding a duck,
A girl reading a book, a boy riding his bike through a puddle-he’s covered in muck!
Some small children playing hide and seek, some older boys playing soccer,
Some toddlers seeing shapes in the sky, my neighbours walking their naughty dog: Docker.

So if one day you’re sitting on a park bench reading your newspaper,
When you realise your daughter or son has used it for their school paper,
Put the newspaper by your side
and just watch the world go passing by.