My name is not unusual

You’ll hear it quite a lot

You might assume we‘re English

But in fact my family‘s Scots.

My grandad came from Scotland

North West of Aberdeen

The stretch along the Moray Firth

Is where you’d find our Greens.

There’s plenty in the census

A common local name

Back at least two centuries

You’ll find us Scottish Greens.

But Scots or English meaning

It’s pretty much the same

Most likely lived near greenery

Not much more to the name.

My other name is Andrew

For Scotland‘s patron Saint

And middle’s Alexander

Which was my Grandad‘s name.

So Andrew Alexander

Two quite Scottish names

An Englishman of Scots descent

A very common name.

Less common up in Scotland

But still a common name

Lots of other Andrew Greens

But we‘re not all the same.

What’s my motivation

Let’s give this a think

Why’m I doing what I do?

What gives me a push?

It’s too late for ambition

At least in conventional sense

But I‘ve still got stuff I want to do

And who knows how long left.

I want to make the most of life

Rejoice in my good health

I‘ve cash enough for what I want

And that, to me is wealth.

I’ve spent too long sat at a desk

Now love to be outside

Growing stuff or running hard

With good air in my lungs.

Life is inspiration

It’s good to be alive

To feel the rush another day

And just push on with life.

I want to keep on breathing

Have blood course through my veins

The simple joy of living

The motivation to be.

It can be rather difficult

For poets to put stuff in lists

And sad to say it’s a busy day

So have I got the time for this?

The Green Mile is a brilliant film

And Forest Grump another

Chariots of Fire – can’t make it scan

But ‘must have’ for a runner.

Annie Hall still makes me laugh

despite all Woody’s bother

Shape of Water, Parasite

That’s another couple.

Thought Pulp Fiction very good

despite the gory violence

Back to the Future, War and Peace

Oppenheimer very good

I think that’s ten I make it?

Not a well considered list

There’s many more could make it

At least I kept my streak alive

As far as I can take it.

I’d like to say it’s gratitude

Or unrelenting joy

But have to answer honestly

Such gushings not my style.

I screw things up, I get things wrong

I do that all the while.

When things go right I’m ‘satisfied’

Allow myself a smile.

Of course I’ll get excited,

be happy, have my thrills

But they’re not things for every day

They happen when they will.

Mostly I’m just ‘satisfied’

I rub along ok

Nothing went too very wrong

It was an ok day.

You have to have your ups and downs

And plain old ordinary days

It makes the good days special

It’s always been that way.

Sadly there’s no strategy

Goals, objectives plans

I’m past my best before date

And I’m simply clinging on.

There’s things I fill my day with

There’s things I want to do

But as to life objectives

I’ll leave them up to you.

I could have made a bucket list

Of things I’ve left undone

But I take each day the way it comes

And try an’ enjoy each one.