Wednesday, 26 May 2021

Waiting in the queue

           



I was brought up waiting
As a child in the war
Waiting to go to school
Waiting to ride a bike
Waiting for pocket money
Waiting for my birthday
Waiting for a girlfriend
Waiting for a first kiss
Waiting to watch a film
With lots of other kids
At the town's cinema

Then each day I was queuing
As a youth later on
Queuing the towns shops
Queuing at school's lunch time
Queuing to get the cane
Queuing in all the shops
Queuing in the schools toilet
Queuing at the bus stop
Queuing for everything
It seemed like everyday 
I didn't mind I was free


Image from www.Dreamstime.com

11 comments:

  1. Luv the reflection of youth into adult days
    Happy Wednesday

    Much 💚love

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  2. I never really thought about it, but this poem is so right. I, too, didn't mind waiting when I was a child. It seems there was always a game or something to pass the time.

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  3. When we're kids, we accept so much. Whatever way thing are, that's normal.

    I'm much struck by the queues to get the cane. A lot of rule-breakers, apparently!

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  4. (Oops! 'struck' – no pun intended.)

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    1. I went to a mixed Grammar school in the UK, girls never got the cane. I got it once...and it hurt!

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  5. The last line says it all!! Wonderful poetry!

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  6. Waiting and Queueing are about the same except there is visible hope being in Que. Do you tell which war? and your age then??
    I was eight and got my first kiss way before that, on the storm cellar steps of our country school.
    ..

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    1. Born 1936, so started school in UK in 1941. As we lived in southern England where much of the army, navy and airforce were based bombing was commonplace. Many german bombers finding defence spotting them would drop their bombs anywhere including country towns and villages just to escape before they were shot down.

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  7. As a child our waiting was controlled by others, then when "free" we voluntarily stand in line to wait! Then it becomes "queuing," a word I have never used (being in the US) and had to scroll up to even spell correctly! Of course, with that "freedom" came responsibility, no waiting for pocket money, we had to make our own!

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  8. I like how the waiting changes with the age.

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  9. We have to bring some of that youthful energy while we wait, maybe get a little creative with those supposedly wasted minutes and see what little pleasures we can find in them.

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