Poetry

A match made on Oxford Road - a love ballad by Kathy Tytler

He came to my window, on that Saturday night,

He looked kind of wild as if he’d been in a fight.

I was on the evening shift at MacDonalds drive-thru,

Oxford Road, Reading, and there was quite a queue.

He put in his order for a burger and fries,

He gave me a great big smile and looked into my eyes,

‘You look like a goddess,’ he said, ‘In that window, framed.’

I fluttered my eyelashes and asked that goddess’s name,

Have I the beauty of Aphrodite or the wisdom of Athena?

But he said that the name was Frigg! It suggested something meaner.

He told me I could be his Frigg.

I told him he was an ignorant Pig!

He said ‘it was a compliment,

and Beloved is what the name meant’

I said, ‘You’re talking Balderdash!

and are you paying by card or cash?’

He told me he was Odin The Norse god of war

And that he would marry a goddess named Frigg,

It was written in the stars.

He bid me come away with him, to the North we would fly.

I said ‘it is hours ‘til the end of my shift, and here’s your burger and fries.’

He waited in the car park although it got quite late,

Then he told me of my powers, as a goddess I’d control fate

As Frigg I’d be very powerful I would be a force of nature,

I would spin fate from the clouds and weave it into the future

We set a date for our wedding, Friday the 13th of May

Neither of us was Triskaidekaphobic, it was the perfect day

I was the brains and he was the brawn,

World domination was our plan,

We flew away into the dawn

And the Shenanigans began.

Kathy Tytler 4.1.19 (for Reading Poetry Slam)

Oxford Road by Sneha Ramdam

I am actually quite attached to oxford road, as I lived quite close by during my childhood,

So every-time I think about it or drive past I feel this intense wave of nostalgia and I just love it

I remember it as this extremely communal, local place full of life and vigour

Oxford Road was an endless display of culture, tradition, so many different shops and stalls of all colour and decorations trailed down this road

It was so exciting and eventful

From libraries to supermarkets to the smallest of shops, barbers, Religious places of worship, houses,

Its almost a whole city all squished into a everlasting road

If I were to walk down this road once again as a kid I can just feel the striking atmosphere, 

The hustle and bustle, families, friends, people of all ages all on this road

People recognising each other and waving, shouting from the other side of the road

The Night life is amazing!

Remember late night Tesco runs and it was just so lively

Though the sky was black, the stores and lamplights lit everything to a warm yellow tone

Whether its night or day oxford road will always be active