Shirley came second in the 2010 John Clare Trust Poetry competition with her poem The Tramp

The Tramp

I remember seeing you on my  way to school,
shuffling along the road in the shadows,
rummaging in bins  or picking over
the smoky ends that had smouldered
in another’s lips.
A  huddled heap in scare-crow clothes,
you were like a mislaid parcel
tied  tightly round
with string.

I remember seeing you in the  park
spark out beneath last week’s news,
or sitting silently in the  shadows
watching the world pass by
with dulled old eyes,
the dregs of  broken dreams eddying
at your feet.

And I remember that day
they  found your iced bones
on the memorial steps,
ribboned medals lay at your  side
and faded poppies wreathed
your head.

Shirley Elmokadem

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