Open a new door, a collection of poems

Today’s poem was inspired by the famous poem, Television, by Roald Dahl. In this poem, Roald Dahl takes a humorous look at the problem of children watching excessive amounts of TV and no longer reading.

My poem, called The grandparents, isn’t about as important a topic, but it takes a humorous look at the significant role of grandparents in our modern world. Many of us rely heavily on grandparents to help us raise our children in double income and busy homes.

About The grandparents

I wrote this poem about all the grannies and granddads that help their children to bring up their grandchildren in this crazy modern world of ours. I frequently see them at the school, filling in when mom and dad can’t be there and helping out everywhere they can. God bless grannies and granddads everywhere.

The grandparents

You’ll find them everywhere you look,

quietly observing from every cranny and nook,

drinking tea with friends in a local tea house,

in a pet store showing the children a mouse,

cheering on the team at a school hockey match,

in a chicken coop, helping the chicks to hatch,

at the hospital, bringing flowers to a friend,

at a play, watching until the very end.

They take the grandkids overnight,

they help resolve a sibling fight,

 they build a pirate island in the sand pit,

they search and find a missing soccer kit,

they teach our children not to stare,

and soothe them after a horrid nightmare,

they help us with our daily grind,

to our pressures and stress, they are not blind,

they support us through our daily toil,

although their comments can make the blood boil.

Their selective hearing can be hard to take,

you shout so loud, the dead could wake,

“No need to shout”, they say,

“we heard you clearly”,

sometimes it’s lucky for them,

we love them so dearly,

the dinner is too salty,

the cake is too sweet,

“Where did you find such frightfully tough meat”,

it’s easier to sit back and let them cook the dinner,

although watching them makes you feel like a sinner,

 and their criticism of our parenting style,

is enough our delicate feelings to rile.

There are so many positives to their involvement,

you couldn’t possibly bear any resentment,

I salute the moms and dads of the post war generation,

who changed the world with their determined inspiration.

BOOK BLURB

Open a New Door is a poetic peep into the life of poet, Robbie Cheadle, who lives in South Africa.

The book is divided into four categories: God bless Africa, God bless my family and friends, God bless me and God bless corporates and work. Each part is sub-divided into the good, the bad and the ugly of the two poets’ experiences, presented in rhyming verse, free-style, haiku and tanka, in each of these categories and include colourful depictions of the poet’s thoughts and emotions.

The purpose of this book of poetry is encapsulated in the following tanka and haiku poems:

What drives me to write?

To share my innermost thoughts

The answer is clear

It’s my personal attempt

To make some sense of this world.

 

Inspiration blossoms

Like the unfurling petals

Of the Desert Rose

About the author

Roberta Eaton Cheadle has published nine children’s books under the name of Robbie Cheadle. She has branched into writing for adults and young adults and, in order to clearly separate her children’s books from her adult books, is writing for older readers under the name Roberta Eaton Cheadle. Roberta Eaton Cheadle has published two novels for YA and adult readers and has contributed to seven anthologies.

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:

• Website https://www.robbiecheadle.co.za/
• Blog https://robbiesinspiration.wordpress.com/
• Twitter https://twitter.com/bakeandwrite

Thanks so much for stopping by to support my talented friend Robbie Cheadle, #RRBC SPOTLIGHT AUTHOR of the month. Robbie and I would love to hear from you. ~Bette A. Stevens

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