No one, no matter what they claim
Can ever be ‘too ordinary a person’
To inspire a truly wonderful poem
Life isn’t about the achievements
It is the personal journey travelled
The paths entwined along the way
3. Everyone holds something amazing
Each life will capture such memories
Beautiful in the truth of love and loss
4. True community is in shared stories
We tell them, write them, paint them
Sing them and dance them together
5. We really need to talk about death
Not because of the pain or the fear
But because it opens our eyes to life
About Dr Phil Isherwood
Dr Phil Isherwood has been volunteering since 2010 as the ‘hospice poet’ – writing poems inspired by conversations with patients and by their creative work in the Creative Therapy Department at Bolton Hospice. He was awarded his PhD at the University of Bolton for ‘Poetry in the Hospice’ in July 2015. Earlier poetry work has involved writing workshops in mental illness recovery settings (community arts and hospital secure units) and at a brain injuries centre during his part-time studies for an MA in Creative Writing completed in 2005. His poems have appeared in various publications including Stand, Hot Wire, The Ugly Tree, ReSource Magazine and on local radio. You can follow him on Twitter.
