Age 4 , A good year.

i remember when I was four

Santa came to visit my front door.

he brought me a wooden train as big as myself

i rode in it all day,couldn't put it on the shelf.

best ever Christmas I ever had

best ever present,cheery and glad.

growing up was tough,we were very poor

the disease of poverty,we didn't have a cure.

sometimes my parents worked,then austerity came knocking

competition for jobs,everyone was flocking.

some nights we starved,never ate till the next day

hunger pains ever present,that was our normal day.

most days were ok,we scriimped and we shared

just proved to me,my mum really cared.

she had her demons,but don't we all

she stood firm to the end,determined not to fall.

most clothes I got were second hand

no fancy colours,no well known brand.

we appreciated what we had,my Mum tried her best

sometimes I wondered how she did it,passed life's tough test.

brought us up respectful,polite and well behaved

we knew where we stood,our paths had been paved.

loyal,tough,hard as you can be

that was my Mum,she adored me.

i will always think fondly when I vision her face

nothing could ever take her place.

My mum was a hard lady in the nicest way,fiercely protective of her home and family.she was a typical working class Glasgow lady.not afraid of hard work,and never tired of looking after me and my brother and sisters.great role model.

families are more important todat than ever I think.with modern day pressures , it is so easy to lose track of loved ones.being accessible brings closer bonds with families.sure there are days when they infuriate and disappoint you,but that should never leads to total expulsion,that's a road I won't go down.seen it happen to a lot of people,and it never ends well for them.

we were brought up in a disciplined household.my parents were tough but fair,we would never be insolent or bad mouth anyone.we were always brought up to respect our elders and others.sadly a discipline that seems missing with a lot of children today.

happy days others bad

family smiles,rather sad

short of food,hunger kicks in

taking food ,considered a sin

dictator in the family,stood on patrol

watching the food ,like an evil troll.

watching us starve ,while he filled his face

he acted selfishly ,total disgrace.

he knows who he is,he shows no shame

playing parent to him,was just a game.

years ago my wife and I were offered a house,the best decision I made was to visit the street at night.what a different place,couldn't have been more different.quiet during the day, a veritable crazy place at night.

our earliest memories of family life were good ones.but when we came on hard times the mood of the house changed dramatically.you could sense the misery and sadness in the air,like a total polar opposite of happier times.the badness hung in the air like a bad smell.we worked hard to have as many good times as was possible considering our financial situation back then. Life is what you make it.