Punam’s d’Verse Poetics Tuesday prompt is Looking back. This freestyle poem is a synopsis of my year.

Sandwich Filling (freestyle poem)

January starts with

an international bond offering

long workdays interspersed

with school collections

Dad, aka au pair, continues

in a rapid downward health spiral

until he reaches a bed bound state

culminating in a series of tests

during a three-day hospitalisation

pulmonary hypertension the diagnosis

untreatable as a condition but

continuous positive airway pressure machine

restores a level of normalcy

***

February, a month of conflict

with legal advisors and underwriters

everyone in my house

succumbs to the latest flu bug

lazily doing the rounds

and laying people low

birthday trip nearly ruined

but I gulp down pills

and try to make the most

of splendid leopard sightings

returning home to work chaos

and a very sick mother

***

March kicks off with Mom

on her fourth antibiotic

I leave my team to manage

bond closure best they can

and rush Mom to the ER

where she is admitted with

pneumonia and a fractured rib

fortune smiles and 24-hour delay

enables me to pick up work pieces

I can’t visit Mom as issuance must close

guilt wrestles relief as colleagues celebrate

***

Sinus operation in early April

much worse than expected

doctor drills a drainage hole

through bone and cartilage

recovery long and difficult

ten full days off work

yet sick leave far too short

I struggle to regain my strength

restorative trip to bush

fraught with unseasonal cold

but I got exceptional misty shots

***

May, a most unhappy month

fall out with work colleague

lack of appreciation soul destroying

I contemplate my future

while absorbing Buddist philosophies

on coping and disengaging

they don’t help me at all

is it time for me to retire?

I finish my buffalo painting

Perhaps I’ll have an exhibition

***

June passes in a flash

both sons writing mid-year exams

stress levels high at home

disillusionment with work increases

TC escapes it all, as usual

a week working in Cape Town

followed by two weeks in Amsterdam

as I hold the home together alone

he offers a holiday in London

and a few days in Brussels

as a peace offering

I take Michael with me

***

July is fabulous

London is vibrant and busy

we visit art galleries and pubs

tour of Flanders cemeteries

bucket item ticked off

horror of World War 1

mitigated by visit to Bruge

and chocolate tour in Brussels

we leave Europe to its summer

and return home to deep winter

***

August is a busy month

final school year dance

students decked out

in eveningwear and finery

champagne corks pop

celebration swings to examinations

preliminary exams followed by finals

days and days of anxiety and stress

24-hour art examination

Michael produces a masterpiece

***

work agitation settles down in September

for once promises made are kept

I feel more settled and happier

maybe I’ll last the further five years

my company is hoping for

I’m not committing though

hope always brings disappointment

Mom finally seems to be rallying

after six months of poor health

she’s so tiny and frail

I’m afraid she’ll disappear down drain

along with the bath water

perhaps I should make her shower

***

October filled with work challenges

another bloody bond issuance

my least favourite of all transactions

lots of lawyers and advisors

this one fraught with challenges

and a team new to these deals

coaching and training take on

a whole new meaning

both boys writing examinations

TC swans off to Japan

for two weeks of work and play

***

November, the heavens open

it rains day and night

the rain in Spain

takes up permanent residence

in South Africa

will the sun ever shine again?

the latest bond finally closes

on the last working day of the month

no rest for the wicked

as year-end rush commences

Michael has three visits to the hospital

and Dad has one

***

December arrives at last

with its promise of yearend shutdown

here I am, practically alone,

holding the fort and resolving

last minute catastrophes

the office shuts tomorrow

will it end, I wonder?

at least there is Christmas

something to look forward to

lots of good food and company

and a holiday to the bush

to watch the turtles hatching

watch this space!

CFFC

Dan’s CFFC prompt is Summer and Winter. You can join in CFFC here: https://nofacilities.com/2025/12/15/cffc-a-look-back-one-year/.

I’m combining CFFC with Thursday Doors this week. You can join in Thursday Doors here: https://nofacilities.com/2025/12/18/more-christmas-from-osv/

These are photographs of paintings by Vincent van Gogh taken by me at the van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.

It is the amazing Rebecca Budd who inspired me to share my photographs of van Gogh’s paintings. You can find Rebecca in her Reading Room here: https://rebeccasreadingroom.ca/2025/12/16/jane-austen-at-250-emma-and-the-art-of-missteps/

The Flower Hour

I’ve been saving these red roses for Christmas. You can join in Terri’s The Flower Hour here: https://secondwindleisure.com/2025/12/16/the-flower-hour-11-last-chance-holiday-florals/

I was trying to be artistic with the sun on the raindrops.