In Jan 2025 the workshop put on by Julie Stevens included a poem by W B Yates - The Lake Isle of Innisfree. I thought this was about missing tranquil moments filled only with the natural noise of nature. My poem is about escaping unnatural noise in my head for the joy of natural noise of my grandchildren.

A place where I enjoy to be

Sometimes what others see as noise, provides escape

My grandchildren give me this gift

As I melt into their world of juvenility and freedom

Conversations with 1 year old Lillie

Fluent in nonsense but understanding every word

Drawing our own masterpieces with 7 year old Archie

Concentrated engagement, that benefits us both

And 14 year old Alfie, pushing boundaries as teenagers do

But still happy to be grandads expert on European football

Sometimes you can’t have enough of the right noise