Pudding Lane, Bow church, All Saints
Poplar. The overhead railway runs
high above long lines of commuter traffic
flashing trails of red tail lights,
white headlights in the dark morning.
Ancient names overarching modern machines.
Heron Quays, West India Quay, Canary Wharf.
We glide from small station shelters
into a vast overhead dome
to change trains amongst milling throngs
rushing to work in glass cased offices.
West India Dock, Crossharbour, Mudchute
appear as daylight grows.
another day, off to work again
in futuristic transport
yet a little out of this world
as I pass names established
so long ago, recurring still
in history books
and present day news.
This is great and so descriptive. I am so wordy that I cannot put this into lines of poetry as you do. Well done.
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I like this. If I can find where I placed a photo that relates to this I will come back and reblog this with your permission and try to include the photo.
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Thank you very much, I am happy for you to reblog this with your photo. I have no photos as I was always on automatic pilot on my way to and from work so early then late in the day. It always seemed so incongruous travelling on Docklands light rail past all these ancient names.
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I found the photo and it is reblogged. Thanks for permitting me to do this.
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Thanks for an excellent choice of photograph. I have commented at the end of your reblog.
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I have a very beautiful power point presentation about trains that a friend sent to me around Christmas. I would like to share it with you if I can. It is a rather large file and some e mail systems have trouble opening it. It would be simple if I could blog it but I can’t find how to do that. my e mail is meskram2@comcast.net If you would allow me to send it I think you would enjoy it.
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Thanks for your kind offer, but I am not so interested in trains. What I was thinking of in the poem was the strangeness of linking ancient and modern events with these place names, along with the futuristic appearance of Dockland Light Rail, which can be run by computer or human manual control. But thanks once again for the offer anyway.
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That’s fine. Thought there was an interest for trains there.
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Reblogged this on SkramblinGeezer.
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Ooh, great poem. I’m just trying to polish up something similar about village names on the road we recently drove from Dorset to Berkshire. I also would like to re-blog if I may……
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Certainly reblog it.. Thank you very much, and thank you for asking.
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Reblogged this on The Cheesesellers wife and commented:
I really like this poem about traveling across the eastern part of London. The names have always intrigued me too….
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Thank you for your “likes” on my blog… I’m happy that you enjoy my work!
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Glad you are happy with that. I know little about art, but I like looking at yours, and seeing you think out loud about it.
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Very nice.
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Thank you.
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