When I was a Lad

This poem of reminiscence was written by Terry Forster …

WHEN I WAS A LAD

I remember the days
When I was a lad
Those happy days
When I was never sad
With cowboys
And Indians
And kicky the can
I was so, so pleased
I wasn’t a man

Those long, long days
In the summer time
When the whole world
Seemed to be mine
With pistol strapped
Around my thigh
A roll of caps
And a steady eye

We knocked on doors
And run to hide
With all my palls
There by my side
A buzzer in the drainpipe
Made an awful noise
A woman shouting
”You naughty boys”

There was hide and seek
The girls played too
It was wonderful when,
I called “I found you.”
From dawn till dusk
our souls did play
and everyone said
”What a great day.”

A dustbin lid
A cricket bat
A can with sticks
We all loved that
A skipping rope
We jumped quite far
Pockets full of marbles
And a penker to jar

A handful of chucks
We threw in the air
A rope hanging from a tree
We took turns, 1-2-3
A snagger or two
To feed the crew
Boy, am I glad I’m not you

Playing hopscotch
An empty tin
Filled with stones
That was the thing
A top and whip
With colours of chalk
The spud gun
A weapon of sorts
We played all kinds of sports

A catapult
A serious crime
If you were caught
You didn’t do time
The pea shooter
Was loaded
From a mouth full of peas
If one hit your nose
You fell on your knees

Two tennis balls
Against a wall
A ball in a stocking
Delighted us all
Stilts made from cans
We walked in a line
Everyone laughed
We thought it was fine

When I was a lad
I had no thoughts of crime
As long as I got home
In plenty of time
My supper was ready
A wash and a scrub
Or a dip in the tub
Then off to bed
An hour before nine
And we all had one hell of a time.