No. 44
By Tina Cathleen MacNaughton
All is quiet in the city street. Just an ordinary street really. Smallish houses, each with a tiny patch at the front. A little scrap of land to call your own. Some use it to store bikes, others just leave the bins there to save dragging them out every week. Most have paved over the front for convenience and less fuss. And then there’s No. 44. It’s different, stands out. Makes passers-by stop and stare and smile in delight. Roses and jasmine trail the faded, chipped sandy brick walls. Their heady scent fills the air and makes the postie breathe in with pleasure and close his eyes just for a moment. Baskets of pink and purple petunias sway gently in the warm summer breeze and capture the attention of passing drivers. Tubs of red and white geraniums colour pop the grey pavement. Clumps of rosemary grow as fast as witches’ hair and frame the bright blue front door with tiny purple flowers scented with remembrance and promise. Plump hydrangeas swell into big pastel balloons of pink, white and blue. Contented bees hover and hum over fragrant lavender whilst pretty cabbage whites and the odd tortoiseshell petal dance in the early morning sunshine.
No. 44, a little patch of magic on a city street. An old lady waters it daily with collected rainwater and a smile. Her cat sleeps peacefully in a slice of golden sunlight as she sweeps the front patiently with her birch broom.
Inspiration: There are a couple of terraced houses on a busy Southsea street with the most beautiful front terraces. The residents have made gardens out of the little pavement space they have and I smile whenever I walk or drive by. Making the most of what we have, a little piece of nature on our doorstep – small steps.
Image by cocoparisienne from Pixabay
Tina Cathleen MacNaughton is a writer and poet. She was born and bred in Portsmouth and now divides her time between Crowthorne, Berkshire, where she practises as an acupuncturist, and her Southsea flat where she walks by the sea and writes poems in her head. Tina has published a collection of poetry, On the Shoulders of Lions (The Choir Press), and two children’s books: When the Elves Rescued Christmas and Santa’s Still Asleep (WriteRhymes). Tina features on the Writing Literary Portsmouth online literary map. www.writerhymespoetry.com