Finchale Abbey Poem by Paul Reed

From fond far-off days
The carrying of the river gently to the sea
Insistent as time
Brings this day to us at last
After a generation has passed;

The grass and the stones
Still rest heavy on the slopes
Nothing has changed
The breezes still blow
Though we were here so long ago;

Can a day from the past
Ever exist again
Or does it just drift away
Never again to be found
Did our feet ever touch this ground?

No history book can tell
But we hold dear in our minds
Those glorious days now gone
Yes, on some long-lost yesterday
Along this path we made our way.