STREET LIGHTING

STREET LIGHTING

Dear Borough Council ‬
Please may we have our orange

Street lighting back‬

I used to sleep‬
So much more soundly‬
When it didn't feel as if‬

The world outside‬
Was scanning the night skies‬
For Zeppelins

When there is no moon

These lights seem twice as bright
Against the darkest night

Soft warm cosy glows‬
Shaping the nighttime landscape‬
‪Replaced by searchlights‬

Bright beams of midnight‬
A sinister parked car lurking‬
Disconcertingly

Cold night lights burning
Dancing on the retinas
Of passing motorists

When there is no moon
Such lights seem twice as bright
Against the deepest night

Day shift to night shift
Contrasting with the hues
Of yellow shifting to blue

Did generations before
Indulge in extensive research
To find most suitable colours

All forgotten now
As penny-pinching politics
Sacrifices safety

When there is no moon
These lights seem twice as bright
Against the cruellest night

Dark shadows
Concealing darker thoughts
Around frightening corners

Lonely and frightened
Wanting only to be home
Jumps at every hidden sound

Blinded by pinpoints
Running into deeper darkness
As the lights go out

When there is no moon
Light seems too far to fight
Falling into darkest night

MAWH, October 2018