Tenth Floor Window Tenth floor window and a bird's eye view Looking down and out on the town that voted out A sea view of cold water, churned with misery And a despair and desperation that hangs in the air Tainted with resignation of a future without hope Tenth floor window and a bird's eye view Of row upon row of shuttered shops Closed for the ever-winter And row upon row of micro pubs and cafes and takeaways Because when there's nothing left You've still got to eat to give you the strength To patrol the streets lost, without reverie Tenth floor window and a bird's eye view Of storm clouds billowing from a continent closer than London Yet a million miles from the decay and hopelessness That walks endlessly along the weather worn promenade A town where colour has leached away Reflecting the sea brown and dull olive Of wave upon wave of empty days Tenth floor window and a bird's eye view The town that voted leave, the 64% decision. A people disenfranchised blinded by the prospect Of a future envisioned, unshackled from Europe And the desperate hope that Brexit means Brexit and Brexit will Fixit. But it probably won't Tenth floor window and a bird's eye view Of the train station that disgorges The summer crowds, set for beach and fun Happy days of fish and chips in the sun, That always feels cold, in the howling sea breeze A town that felt the need for change Yet wheezes breathless, suffocated to unconsciousness And may never recover again. _____________________________ I walked around Margate today, a once proud and vibrant seaside town, booming with summer holidaymakers Like so many British seaside resort towns, the rise of cheap overseas holiday packages with guaranteed sun and warmth affected their economies. A terminal decline commenced and has not been halted. Decline and decay are everywhere. Boarded up shop fronts, closed down businesses. An air of despondency hangs over the town. Margate voted 64% for the UK to leave the EU. A Brexit town, hoping that Brexit fix it Maybe it will, but sadly you feel it won't and nothing will.
