Poem 53 of 230: WHY THE YEW?
To paraphrase one of my uncles,
Showing a church in Hertfordshire:
When you see an old English parish,
There'll be yews in its yard, for sure.
“Why the yew?” I obviously asked.
They were planted, he said, to stop
A resting-shepherd’s sheep chewing-up
The parish-graveyard’s gardened top -
Odour tells them: choose another crop.
(But another thought, I've since heard,
Is that churches were built near yews -
Sacred-sites the pagans preferred.)
(C) David Franks 2003
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| Church of Saint James, Didsbury; 13/5/15 and 25/9/2022 |
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| Norcliffe Chapel, Styal, Cheshire; 17/4/19 |
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| Furness Abbey, Cumbria; 12/8/2022 |
