This poem was written for us by one of our talented members, Mr Sean Ross.

Smarmore Castle

Spider webs on the iron gates mysteriously
Move my energy
Trying to recoup the wisdom
In the mists of fading time.

The castle stands in storied silence.
The noisy clip clop of horses
In the courtyard’s cobbled stones
Beside a hinterland of exotic trees.

Italian restaurant’s war photographs portraying
Monte Casino’s murky past
While Italian cuisine is served
At evening sittings in La Cucina.

Today a modern leisure centre,
Swimming, gymnasium, sauna and Jacuzzi
Steam room providing the marrow
Baths of the golden heroes of old.

Ancient Australian red wood
Guards the inner sanctum of the castle
A rav4 toyota with “Failte Micko”
As a flag of the Wicklow maestro.

Summer demise leading to Autumn’s
Leafy beginnings as a cat crouches
In attentive curiosity patiently
Licking her wound, the wound of humanity.

Reminders of my own wounded nature
As the plough appears in starry stillness
Dogs, bark, lambs bleet melodiously
Peeping through autumn’s doorway.