Cumbernauld’s Aileen Shirra published first poetry collection

Aileen Shirra (57) has written poetry as a hobby for many years and even had the occasional work published in anthologies. But she recently won a competition with the publishers to get a book of her own.

The book, now on general sale, is called The Tumbrel of Time, published by Thynks Publications. Below is a brief poem from the book, entitled Early Snowfall:

Plummeting like a suicide, or spiralling down,

Their crushed canopies like slashed parachutes,

Powerless to cushion their fall.

A few fight back, defying gravity

As they dance to the tune of a chill wind

Before surrendering, parted forever

From the source of their life’s blood,

The whispered rustle of their dying breaths

A grim foreboding of harder partings to come

“I work in adult education and was helping someone with entering competitions when I decided I should go in for one myself, which I ended up winning,” said Aileen, who works for North Lanarkshire Council. She has three grown children and is eagerly looking forward to the birth of her second grandchild.

Aileen explained the significance of the title: “A tumbrel was a type of cart used during the French Revolution to take people to the Guillotine, so the title is about the passage of time. The poems themselves are just a collection of personal reflections.”

Aileen writes as a hobby and to entertain her friends and family. “I certainly don’t have any plans to leave my job - nor do I expect to earn that much money from this!” she said.