John Collins
John Collins has been part of the Arts & Culture scene in Limerick in one form or another for most of his life. An artist with Contact Studios in the city, he is working on a series of poems that he plans to compliment through painting. As an actor he was recently involved in Mike Finn's 'Pigtown' at the Belltable Theatre during the summer. He is a past student of Limerick School of Art and Design and his paintings are part of collections both at home and abroad. John is currently studying Film Production at Limerick College of Further Education. Below is John's poem 'the bridge' which is also accompanied by a short video John has produced himself.
the bridge
there was a man of his own time
a sheltered life he led
the deck of cards his author dealt
to him were sometimes read
the pain, disdain, the turnpike lane
was not his tale to tell
until the stone that held the throne
upon the bridge it fell
a man is what he makes himself
is what he makes his own
the road he walks down to the bridge
he has to walk alone
he takes his book, he tries to look
as swallows circle low
they swoop and land on weathered sand
from the bridge their shadows grow
he stops inside his final keep
grim faced his tale to tell
as darkness creeps and gently seeps
his ever fading well
the weeds that grow, the rains will flow
upon his empty life
his pockets turned, his bridges burned
this man, his brood, his wife
a man is what he makes himself
is what he makes his own
the road that leads down to the bridge
was once his pathway home
he holds his book, he tries not look
as grey crows set to lay
through empty eaves and dying leaves
where the bridge stands in decay