ST MARGARET'S CHURCH, WARD END... (My poem about a church in Birmingham, UK...)

 St Margaret’s Church, Ward End…

(Birmingham, UK…)

Functional, no battlements here,

No gargoyles, no historic stone.

Merely plain, dull and austere,

Its outer skin weathered and prone

To mould and algae. An unkempt shell,

Ageing, unrestored and stark.

Yet a place to go to stave off hell

And hear a churchman’s bite and bark…

Inside though, despite its plaster peeling,

Stained glass glowed with light and life.

Its memorials enticed me down and kneeling

To honour Great War sacrifice and strife…

I thought then of my parents, married there

And of my own Christening in this damp old place.

I stood contrite and saddened at its unbridled wear,

Wondering at its once all empowering grace…

Pete Ray

MY PARENTS' WEDDING, 1943...

...& 50TH WEDDING ANNIVERSARY IN 1993...

I visited St Margaret’s in 2011 before its makeover and took a few images of the place.

A sad day for me, although I was kind of proud too…