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Promoting poetry – a good idea being developed in Shoreham

Marilyn Stafford, photographer
Marilyn Stafford, photographer

Marilyn Stafford, distinguished photographer

Promoting poetry - a good idea being developed in Shoreham

The basic idea is to present a poem, by a local author, on a display board in an arts centre and change the poem every month, additionally to display a local poet’s poem on the local rail station, also changing the poem every month.

A very active organisation of arts enthusiasts based in Shoreham-by-Sea in Sussex, UK, run a whole series of arts and cultural events and have developed a big following over the years. They call themselves Shoreham Wordfest.

A founder member was Marilyn Stafford, the distinguished photographer who has an international reputation. (https://www.marilynstaffordphotography.com/about-marilyn/) It was her idea and wish to promote local poets. She died in January this year (2023) at the age of 97, and the plan is being put into action in her memory.

My good fortune
I was fortunate to have one of my poems chosen for the first display this May/June at The Shoreham Centre. Entitled Love is its own reward I wrote it as a tribute to the countless carers and carer professionals who work without regard to the personal physical or emotional cost to themselves. It seems to me that such people, people that society depends on, are insufficiently recognised and rewarded. They generate so much love but they deserve more from society.

Poem requirements
Poets are invited to submit poems of up to 16 lines
They are invited to send a picture to accompany the poem.
They should put their name at the end of the poem and may mention the source book and a website.
More information for poets in the Shoreham/Adur area: https://shorehamwordfest.com/shoreham-wordfest-poetry/

poem poster - Love is its own reward, David Roberts

One of the first poems selected

Hope you will click the link to Amazon, buy the book and give it a star rating! Thank you if you do.

Link to Poems about Love. How could you know?

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Brilliant South Coast Jazz at Shoreham Just West of Brighton

Just experienced another brilliant jazz morning at the Ropetackle Arts Centre, Shoreham. Sunday 5th December 2021. Mike Hatchard’s “Jazz Breakfast”. Top musicians on brilliant form. Duncan Lamont saxophone and flute, Nils Solberg guitar, Paul Morgan double bass, Mike Hatchard, Keyboard. A scintillating morning.

Mike runs these events every month on the first Sunday of the month at 11 am. Doors open 10.30 am. See what’s coming up at this wonderful arts venue: https://ropetacklecentre.co.uk/whats-on/

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Last Day of Summer 2020

We guessed it was going to be the last day of summer. We had had a late spell of hot weather in mid-September and the forecast was for the last hot day for a while on Monday  the 21st of September. 

We arrived at Shoreham Beach at about 12:30 and met up with four of our friends who had been there for an hour or so. I immediately went in the sea for a swim for about 20 minutes to half an hour and could have stayed in longer. Conditions were perfect. But I knew that Julie was going to be keen to start our picnic lunch very soon. 

We lazed in the sun and chatted till about 3:30 and then packed up to leave the beach thinking that we may not get another  such opportunity again this year. So we took a parting shot of the beach. You can see that very few people were taking advantage of the good weather.

Three days later the temperature at eight in the morning was 8 degrees centigrade and by midday the temperature had only got up to 14 degrees. 

David, davidrobertsblog.com 29 September 2020.

The almost deserted Shoreham beach with nearby Brighton on the horizon about 4pm 21 September 2020