Nanny and the Archers
Long before Coronation Street
nanny listened to the Archers
Everything seemed to stop
at the same time every evening
the clocked ticked slower
and the sun set his fixed stare
through the front window
Nanny’s knitting cuddled her knee
and the mystery novel laughed
with her reading glasses on the front page
I sat cross-legged on the peg rug
noted my Sunday best in the middle pattern
listened to every word the box murmured
Nanny’s wrinkles made patterns on her face
and once I saw a tear stick in a narrow groove
her brown eyes dance in the coal’s light
and the bones of her fingers
shake the china saucer
I would sit in the half lotus position
till the last la di da di da da faded
and the click of the knob signalled
my silence could end
Nanny is not here anymore
but the Archers can still bend my bow
send the arrows flying to her memory
as straight as her grip on my childhood.
sally james
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