THE GEM SHOP
A little shop in Saddler Street
in Durham long ago:
My friend Jill and I would visit there
Come rain or hail or snow.
When we met up in Durham
In those happy days of yore
But Jill is too poorly now
And we don’t go shopping any more.
It was a literal treasure-trove
It sold semi-precious stones
Gems in all shapes and sizes
And multicoloured tones.
Whitby Jet and fluorite
Amber to amaze
Oft with an insect stuck inside:
Relics of ancient days.
Jade and aragonite
And much else besides
It also sold fossils
Still the memory abides.
We neither of us have much money
So there we shopped a lot
Because Jill liked jewellery
And I liked what she got.
The lady and gent who owned it
Were as nice as nice could be
Always kind and helpful
The essence of courtesy.
Last week I was in Durham
Though I didn’t meet anyone there
And I looked up that little shop
That house of treasures rare.
Only to find it’s no longer there
And it’s so sad to relate
Just a boarded-up building
In a run-down state.
And it seemed so indescribably sad
To see what had become
Of a place where we’d been happy
A place we’d felt truly at home.
Tony Kelly, Crook

SKATING
We took our Jack to the ice rink
And didn’t we have a ball
First I went down with a clatter
It was fall, after fall, after fall.
Jack was the next to tumble
Sporting a great big bump
Dad was soon to follow
Landing on his rump.
We must have looked a sorry sight
The three of us hitting the deck
Wet, bruised and battered
We certainly looked a wreck.
But we were bent on skating
And wouldn’t be beaten at all
So we’ll be back next week
And try our best not to fall.
Betty Watt, Durham

OTHER WORLDS
The moon shone bright throughout the
night
Milky Way magnificent sight
Ground frost or heavy dew
Shooting stars look brand new.
Beyond the sun new worlds begin
Looking through a telescope imagining
Life out there watching us too
Thousands of worlds like our planet
blue.
Teddy Cooper, Darlington