Patricia Langford - some writings and travels

                                                Casualties of War            March 2019   Home from school on a hot summer day Silence broken by a muffled sob Cautious tread on cold hard floor, followed the sound with doubt and fear Found mother nearly by open wooden chest Clutching framed photograph of unknown man Wearing naval attire and brave shy smile Her tearstained face then turned to me He was my fiancé she sadly said Missing at sea – I gave up all hope Joined the air force – met your father The wedding came fast, just a few days ahead Guests and family from near and far An unexpected knock on her door Long lost fiancé rescued, returned What should she do? Went ahead with her new plans Numb...

                                                       All About Honour            October 2015       Honour, in confusion and despair, has sadly unfurled it's scrolls and flown from the conscious core of many humans who longer recognise respect, dignity, loyalty, ethics, morals, patriotism, creeds, customs and commitment.       My first memories of honour are of school children carrying the New Zealand flag through each classroom before Anzac Day. We all contributed our pennies and received a picture of a poppy. Honour, respect and remembrance of our fighting, fallen fore fathers is still a powerful image.       I once stood on the ruins of Troy h...

                                                           True Colours         May 2017         My Irish grandmother was full of puzzling sayings - "He sees everything in black and white", or "She's showing her true colours."       Was everything black and white in the olden days when you were young, Grandma? I wondered why the whole family laughed at me – after all I knew her world had no colours – what about all those albums full of black-and-white photographs in the Charlie Chaplin films she took me to see?       The life back in Ireland only seemed to be black-and-white because the priests...

 Patricia crossed the Tasman and toured parts of Australia in 1997:

 The Little Old Lady from Listvyanka                                 June 2016 -Saving Face         A week exploring the culture, temples and gardens of Japan before flying to Vladivostok, Siberia, to embark on the lengthy trans-Siberian railway, seemed another wonderful opportunity. The tranquil temples and gracious gardens presented particular pleasures for my gardener’s soul. At one ancient, sculpturally perfect Shinto shrine, I hurried from the tour coach, carrying only my video camera, unwisely leaving my raincoat and umbrella. At the wooden temple entrance, we were discreetly offered plastic bag overshoes to prevent marking the beautiful floors.       At the end of the visit, rain was steadily falling, so I wrapped my vulnerable video camera in one plastic ove...

1996 saw Patricia touring in Egypt: