Suffolk Writers Group offer daily writing challenges on the Facebook Group. Here are some of the results.

First we have a poem to welcome new people to Suffolk Writers Group. It was written by one of our most prolific and long-serving members, Stuart Foulger, who regularly keeps us entertained with his witty puns, poems and stories.

Next, we have a collaborative poem. Members of Suffolk Writers Group on Facebook posted pictures, words and phrases that I fitted together to form a rough draft. Then, group members suggested new lines and edits until everyone was (mostly) satisfied.

The poem was shared on BBC Radio Suffolk as part of their ‘Suffolk Day’ celebrations on 14th June 2024. Click here if you’d like to listen to the poem and accompanying interview. Also featured is a poem written by Amanda Brown which is included further down this page. (To listen, you’ll need the BBC Sounds app. Our segment starts at just after 1 hour, 38 minutes.)

A Celebration of Suffolk Day, 21st June 2024

An exercise in collaborative poetry with Suffolk Writers Group

Today the sky’s enormous.

The call of the waves

brings me home

to stand upon the sun-warmed sand,

to watch the sunlight sparkle on the water

and feel the breeze caress my skin.

I turn to see pastel painted beach huts

framed by fresh greenery,

cafés and snack bars

and families gathered.

Couples stroll hand in hand

along the promenade

and seagulls soar above.

This is Suffolk,

England’s most easterly county,

fifty miles of precious coastline

and always first to greet the dawn.

by members of Suffolk Writers Group

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Here are some poems by individual members which were also featured on Radio Suffolk.

Walberswick

Walking breathing, tasting salt, heart beats slowly deep in thought.

Almost dark, light fades away, the sun goes down on another day.

The angel’s breath that is the breeze, brushes my face, my hair to tease.

Wild sea grass and sculptured dune stand silhouetted by the silvery moon.

This rough terrain and sandy shore are heaven on earth, nothing more.

I come here for solace and to refresh, a haven of peace when my life’s in a mess.

Memories of children the sea and the sun, running and laughing and having fun.

Even alone it puts a smile on my face.

Walberswick is my happy place.

by Wendy Beasley

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A Poem to Suffolk

Let’s start in Lowestoft

It is such a treat

Our most Easterly point

Where the sunrise you’ll meet.

Some say it mystical

Others just love sand and sea

A bucket and spade

Build a castle for me

Fish, chips, candy floss and rock

A day out in Lowestoft is never forgot

Next we hit Southwold

You can’t miss the pier

So many generations

Have found happiness here

Arrive at the lighthouse

A pint feels just right

Get a good drop of Ghost ship

And you’ll keep up the fight

Fish, chips, candy floss and rock

Your first pint in Southwold is never forgot

Felixstowe such a large port

It offers much more

It’s the South Riviera

At Ipswich’s door

Penny arcades an old coastal fort too

We wander the prom

There is so much to do

At the top of the big wheel

We can look out to sea

The crowned Prince of Sealand

Is waving at me

Fish, chips, candy floss and rock

There’s so much in Felixstowe that Suffolk’s forgot.          

Fred fish 2024

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Covehithe

Where rolled gold sand rises

to crumbling cliffs,

warm wind whips waves

to a cappuccino froth,

sucking shingle, sifting shells.

There, salt-licked skeleton trees

cast shadows and shade

under low skies,

where seawater flows to feed the lagoon.

Clouds cut soft patterns,

adrift, on a backdrop of royal blue,

as sharp-eyed gulls swoop and call.

Between breaking waves

the faint rustle of wind

tickling wheat on the top of the cliff.

Paws and toes tread the sand,

sinking disappearing prints in perfect peace

in this solitary heaven.

And all the while, white horses haul the tide

feeding the ravenous sea.

by Sarah Shephard

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The Disused Railway

The disused railway , there it lay

Along from Aldeburgh, Thorpeness way

Behind the caravans, two miles or more

A well-worn path to all explore

Britten’s Shell, proud on the beach

The North Sea lies within its reach

The sunrise picks out fishing smack

Four a.m. start, and just got back

Fish and chips, with mushy peas

Tourists flock to sample these

And when the sun descends once more

The A12 beckons to your front door

by Stephen Oakes

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Felixstowe
Oh Suffolk has a lot of towns,
I’ve visited them all,
From South West down to Sudbury
With Gainsborough House an’ all,
To Lowestoft up in the north
Where fishing fleets once ruled
And Bury in the western edge
Which many think is a jewel,
But I love somewhere different,
A place I long to be
That’s full of groynes, and chips and gulls
It’s Felixstowe for me!
You can keep your quirky Southwold
With its lighthouse and its sand
With its amber and its history
And it’s priceless pier so grand
You can keep your gorgeous Dunwich
With its famous tragedy
I like it lots
But all the same
It’s Felixstowe for me!
I’ve fished for crabs in Walberswick
And it was fun to do
Been mesmerised in Shingle Street
Eerie but peaceful too,
But with its doughnuts and the train,
It’s where I want to be,
With pier and prom and Spa an’ all,
It’s Felixstowe for me!

Karen Harman

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Beach Hut Life

Washing up in lukewarm water

with Uncle Fred, and his neighbour’s daughter.

All sat around this ‘sacred ground’

beach hut life is quite … profound. 

Open up; the kettle’s on

soon it whistles like next door’s Ron,

… he once came, some years ago,

and hit it off with auntie Flo.

Homemade cake with milkless tea

joyful as we watch the sea.

Dogs walk past with haughty gait

Kites go up, seagulls wait!

All in all this beach hut life

Is perfect for the trouble and strife, which sometimes tests the cheeriest soul – but which crashing waves and sand, cajole.

This simple pleasure – just gazing out

feels so good without a doubt!

No ‘ifs and buts’ – go! – hire a hut!

Book one NOW – they’ll soon sell out.

by Jane Spencer-Rolfe

Written whilst sitting in a hired beach hut

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Next, we have seven poems about our natural environment written to help inspire Suffolk’s 7-11 year olds with their entries to the 2024 Latitude Poetry Competition.

Silence

Silence is beautiful

Just stand around

Peacefully listening

The quieter we are in Nature

The more we can feel

Grass growing

Leaves unfurling

The feel of the dew under our toes

The quieter we are in Nature

The more we can see

Silent swifts swerving

Bats flying

Fledglings following for food

The quieter we are in Nature

The more we can hear

Hedgehogs snuffling

Pheasants calling

Barn owl hooting

Silence and stillness

The beautiful nature of our county

Brings wisdom, peace and compassion

For our natural world

For we belong there,

We are all one

by Amanda Brown

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Under Dappled Oak

Under dappled oak

Wind jangles bright leaves

Light and shade and rain

The smell of silent woods

All in one moment

Of precious time.

by Sue Thompson

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A Breath of Fresh Air

With too much smoke,

we can choke.

It’s time to revive,

to survive.

We all need to care,

to breathe the fresh air.

Take a walk in the forest or park,

a perfect place to start.

Plant a seed, wherever you go,

and enjoy watching it grow.

by Russell Webb

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I Wonder

I wonder if we all held hands

and stood in a straight line

and wore welly boots or suncream

or balanced on little boats

and tiptoed around ant hills

or meadows or fields of wheat and rice

and pulled each other up cliffs or mountains

or the sides of sleeping volcanoes

I wonder if we all held hands

and stood in a straight line

we could give

our wonderful world a hug.

by Elisabeth Sherriff

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Stag Beetle (An Acrostic)

Startling insect

Thorax shining

Antlers curling

Gruesome looking

But beautiful too

Enchanting with its movement

Endlessly globally

Threatened

Lifeform.

Extinct it must not be.

by Beverley Bowry

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You visited this morning

Have you come before?

Silent splendour

Regal being

My garden feels blessed for seeing you

But sad that you’ve been driven here

Fantastic Mr Fox

by Tess Last

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Lots to See, Lots to Do, Lots to Find

Everywhere we go,
there are tiny creatures and beautiful things
if we want to find them.

Snowdrops in springtime, 
hosting hoverflies and beetles

Riverside reeds sway in the wind 
while dragon and damselflies dart nearby

Harvest mice might scurry amid pretty red poppies
on sunny roadside verges

Shells nestle on a stony beach, with frothy waves 
on a warm summer’s day

A golden beech hedge shines 
in the autumn sun. 

Glistening frost on crunchy grass 
Cold old winter, when some creatures hide

and, like us, wait for spring buds to burst again

by Jane Spencer-Rolfe

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A link to information about the children’s poetry competition details can be found here.

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Here is a poem by Elisabeth Sherriff.

Elisabeth is a part-time writer and qualified teacher, who is passionate about supporting and inspiring children through her writing. Several of Elisabeth’s poems on autism and bereavement have been featured on BBC Upload. When not teaching or writing, Elisabeth can be found rambling around Suffolk or pottering in her garden.

You can visit her website by clicking here.

Here is a wonderful, competition-winning limerick by member Steve Roche.

Over the coming months, I will be adding more examples of our wonderful members’ work so watch this space!