Blame Andrew Ceroni for this one - he suggested the title on the Authors Round Table and this poem popped out. It is now included in Green Living, Sacred Life (Capall Bann) a forthcoming book coauthored by Tye Jamie Coxston

AN AFTERNOON WITH KATHERINE

When Katherine came to see me
It was a pretty day.
The sky was bright as birthday eyes,
It was a time for play.

When Katherine came to see me
It was a special time.
We sang along to made up songs
That didn't really rhyme.

When Katherine came to see me
She did not stay for long.
One afternoon was all we had,
They said she was not strong.

When Katherine came to see me,
She did not tell me why.
I did not ask her to explain -
I knew this was goodbye.

The next time I saw Katherine
She was as still as stone.
They’d put her in her party frock,
Her hair was neatly combed.

They carried out her casket
And laid her in the ground;
But sometimes when I’m all alone,
I feel she’s still around.

Now I am old and fading,
She's waiting at the door.
She’ll take my hand and off we’ll run
To play for evermore.