Friday 17 August 2012

Swenglish so far, a Poem


Swenglish - so far

I've been a fly on the wall,
a spy in the everyday life
of my friends

The walls between
me and other people
have become thin
like five-pound notes

I’ve shared their
fry-ups and Sunday roasts
their fish ‘n’ chips
and Marmite toast

I’ve read stories to little brats
and battled with wild cats
I’ve cleared up domestic mess
God bless the English
- keep calm and carry on!

I’ve met fussy tea drinkers
and heavy deep thinkers
Mediation and dance
Taking a chance
when quizzing in a pub
surviving the greasy grub

Bubbling and squeaking
I’m sick of toilets
that don’t flush and I blush
like the Setting Sun
when I think of all the fun
conversations I’ve had
in bedrooms and bathrooms

I’ve slept in a caravan
in kitchens and public houses
Cheers! Another pint,
I feel frail after all the real ale
Beer Festivals and Red Tents
I’ve been up on the Downs
for countryside strolls
and lost control
of weeds in gardens

I’ve climbed walls
and I’ve painted walls
I’ve been off the wall
and driven my friends up the wall

One woman nearly slapped me
but I felt more numb
when this guy rubbed my bum

Breaking down the wall
between Sweden and England
I’m  not Swedish, I’m not English
I’m Swenglish!


©Lou Ice 2012


I wrote this poem, looking back on the fifteen weeks I spent with fifteen different people in England this spring and early summer. I've only got a couple of days left of my break that I've spent in and around my hometown Nässjö. On Sunday I move in with the first person in Sweden who lives in Malmö in the South, and later on this autumn I'll go all the way up to Umeå in the North. I'm excited and ready to hit the road again! 


If you want to know more about my project please subscribe to my blog posts by typing in your email address in the box to the right below the "about me" picture. You can read more about my Swenglish project here.


Photo by Adriana Pusha who works for Brighton and Hove TV that are making a documentary about Swenglish.


4 comments:

  1. Barnaby Marriott17 August 2012 at 10:01

    Love this! Hope that poem is going in the book too! :-) x x x

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  2. Thanks darling! And thanks for teaching me to sort of like Marmite ... :=) xxx

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  3. I like the sneak preview of what is coming in the book! It raises so many questions. And it's interesting to see that food and drink occur so much in the poem.

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  4. You can't sort of like marmite Lou, it's all in or all out.

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