2009 Poetry Competition Adult Winner

Aul Willie’s Awa

 

Aul Willie’s awa an beerit up by,

Aye, in Buckie’s aul bare muir,

Far snell win’s blaw fae a dreich nor’ sky,

An’ blad’s the mourner’s flooer.

 

Mony’s the lonely furra he ploo’ed,

An’ wi mony a sipen sark,

An mair each ‘eer his shooders bo’od,

Wi a’ his tyauvin wark.

 

“Fit gweed” they speer, “His craft an’ laan

An the sillar he wrocht tae win,

Noo he’s beerit deep in the muir’s reed san’,

An’ left at a’ ahin.

 

Sax fit a grun, that’s a’ tae his,

An’ a kist that’ll weer awa,

An’ seen he’ll be as if niver wis,

An’ daylicht niver saw.

 

Bit there’s mair tae this than meets the e’e,

The souls nae the mortal clay,

Aul Willie kent that man must dee,

Sine face the ‘Judgement Day’.

 

Each nicht at hame fan darkness fell,

Wi his family roon his knee,

Wi open buik God’s love wid tell,

Sine pray wi dignity.

 

Fae scenes like that we hear Burns say,

That ‘Aul Scotia’s grandeur springs’,

An’ Willie’s left a legacy,

Greater by far than King’s.

 

His wark wis deen, ‘twas time tae dee,

Time tae lowse an’ gang tae God,

The jewel’s noo in God’s Treasury,

The caskets in the sod.

 

By Charles Geddes, Buckie.

This poem earned Charles £100, a very nice gold trophy and a winners certificate, congratulations Charles!

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