Winter Picnic

One picnic with my family I would rather now forget,

Since it started with a thunderstorm that left us very wet.

We ran like rabbits to the car and tried to eat our lunch,

But our sandwiches were soggy and our biscuits lacked their crunch.

We aimed to keep the rain out so we wound the windows up,

But that just made them foggy. Then I dropped my half-full cup!

My parents weren’t too pleased with me as anyone could tell

And then the baby filled the car with a most awful smell!

At last we saw the rain had stopped, so quickly we got out.

Mum changed the baby’s nappy. It was then Dad gave a shout.

“Oh no, we’ve run over a nail!” He’d found a tyre was flat.

So we weren’t going anywhere till he had dealt with that.

While Dad was working on the wheel, I got my brand new ball.

I kicked it high into a tree, but it refused to fall!

So then I said: “I’ll climb the tree and shake the football down.”

But Mum said: “You’ll do no such thing” and stopped me with a frown.

I didn’t want to lose the ball, but what would you have done?

It looked as if I’d have to save to buy another one.

Just then a teenage boy came by. He said: “Leave it to me.”

At once he climbed up to the branch and shook the football free!

I tried to catch it as it fell, but Mum caught it instead.

She didn’t catch it in her hands. It landed on her head!

I thought it wasn’t wise to laugh in case she was upset.

She’d told me not to bring the ball. I hoped that she’d forget.

When finally Dad changed the tyre, he said: “It’s time to go.

Those heavy clouds are coming back. The journey will be slow.”

I moaned: “An hour here’s not enough. We need some time to play!”

But Mum declared: “Your Dad is right. Let’s come another day.”

Although this time our picnic didn’t seem much fun at all,

We did arrive home safely and I still had my new ball.

The baby now is chuckling and we’re by the fire and warm.

It still was an adventure, even with the winter storm.

 Monty Edwards

•  Submitted in response to Poetry Prompt #24

Monty says: Some picnics are memorable for the wrong reasons, but even if not exactly enjoyable they can still supply some interesting and humorous experiences.