Sidmouth poet is published

TWO years after taking up writing poetry from his flat overlooking Sidmouth seafront, Michael Ashby has had one of his poems published.

Michael, 58, a retired accountant, moved with his wife to Sidmouth eight years ago from Kingswear.

He said: "I have written about 20 poems, they are quite important to me.

"When I saw the poetry competition on Google I decided to enter and was very pleased to get it into print.

"It is only four lines long but has a big image, which means a lot to me."

His poem, published in a book People and Places, by United Press Ltd., is called Devon Cream Sea.

Footprints sink in golden sand

Blueberry sea licks honey land

Gannets dive from strawberry sky

Clotted cream crests wave goodbye.

Michael said: "Nature inspires me, particularly here. I am totally in love with Sidmouth."

He has also been encouraged to enter more poetry competitions and hopes to put together a booklet of his work in the future.

Another of his poems, called Salcome's Estuary Orchestra reads:

Seabirds dance to Neptune's beat

And like moths around a flame

Welcome home the fishing fleet

Back safe from the catching game

Lights blinking, prawns winking, ferries crossing, visitors jostling,

Sails bracing, dinghies racing, boatmen waving, lifeboat saving,

In and out, to and fro, rise and fall, high and low,

Riverside, seaside, creek side, boat side,

All dance to the water's refrain

And as cormorants line up to conduct

The estuary orchestra plays again

Finally the conductors dry immodestly on a prow

And as the sun turns off the rain

The estuary orchestra takes a bow

Before playing a final encore

Over and over and over again.

United Press has another competition running to find the best local poem, the overall winner receiving £1,000 cash.

You can submit up to three poems, 20 lines and 160 words each, by Wednesday, December 31, to United Press Ltd., Admail 3735, London, EC1B 1JB.