DELIGHTED Saltburn care home residents have seen their short poems about the pandemic published in an anthology.
Budding poets from Hazelgrove Court Care Home, on Randolph Street, submitted their four-line entries for NAPA’s digital book of poetry in memory of those lost to Covid-19.
The activities provider association for older people appealed for poems to coincide with World Poetry Day and The National Day of Reflection earlier this year.
These were later published in “Reflections – An Anthology of Poetry”, which is available to download for free from the NAPA website.
Among those to see their poems published in the anthology was 87-year-old Walter Ross, a resident at Hazelgrove Court, who said “It’s a miracle”.
His poem reads: “Cannot see any more smiles, as everyone is wearing a mask /
Missing a pint in my local and seeing family and friends / Hoping for better times soon / When covid is a thing of the past.”
Fellow resident Joyce Baxtrem, 90, said “I cannot believe that I’ve had a poem published in a book.”
Joyce Tibbett, 86, added: “My sons will be so proud of their mam. At 86, this feels like a real achievement.”
Sharon Lewis, activities coordinator at Hazelgrove Court Care Home, said: “I love to inspire our residents to achieve new things and this was the perfect opportunity to do this.
“The residents wrote their poems at the height of the last nationwide lockdown and their words are a powerful reflection of their feelings at that time.
“We were delighted to see them published in the NAPA anthology. We had them printed and framed and they’re now hanging in the residents’ rooms.”
To download “Reflections – An Anthology of Poetry” from NAPA, visit http://napa-activities.co.uk/reflections-an-anthology-of-poetry.