Shorthand Fever | Josiespoems

JOSIE'S POEMS

Our Poetical Language
Shadowing Poetry/Paradox

By Josie Whitehead

This is one of the very difficult subjects which I taught for 30 years, ie Pitman's Shorthand.

I am a 120 words per minute writer.

Hello to all my students. As Mrs Whitehead, I started my teaching as Miss Poole and in Jersey. I'd love to hear from my past students.

These are the first two verses of the poem below. I hope you like it. Josie

Shorthand Fever

I should go back to my shorthand books,

And the familiar things that I know:

To hooks on strokes that distinguish the words

And separate brow from blow;

The strokes that are light, those that are dark

And the ones that are half the length,

And the writing of 's' on the opposite side

To show that there’s 'r' in strength.

I should go back to my shorthand books –

To positions of outlines on lines;

To contractions, grammalogues, phrases I learnt,

And other familiar signs.

I'd love to go back to the student world,

And, once more, to the teaching of skills -

But sadly that life is a part of my past,

Far away from these Yorkshire hills.

Copyright on all my poems