Coffee In Kirkcudbright

The best places to go Are the places Off the beaten track The places the tourists Don't know about The unsung places You won't find in the books Like unsung people Without pretense Without show They're real places Like Kirkcudbright Or Ker KOO bree As the locals say An artist's town In the Stewartry Of Dumfries and Galloway At the mouth of the River Dee Life flows like the River here Calmly Into the waiting waters Of the Solway Firth White, red, yellow Flowers Line the way As you amble down the Main Street The buildings painted In green, blue, purple And peach pastels A baker's goods appealing To your sense of smell Boats and crews Are busy at the wharf A working harbour That gives this place A certain charm The old ruin of MacLellan's Castle Dating back to 1577 Presides with a flair of mystery Over the scene John Paul Jones was once Held prisoner In the old Tolbooth Now a gallery for the local Artists' inspirations We stop in a café Chat with the owner Sip the hometown brew From a table on the Street Old folks passing Mothers with their strollers Children with their dogs Greeting one another As they go by A small town simplicity Seems harder and harder To find sometimes No worry No hurry Relax. Unwind. Enjoy. ~ Laurence Overmire (Previously published in The Ghost of Rabbie Burns: An American Poet's Journey Through Scotland, Indelible Mark Publishing,2016)