Downtown Gumtree Lane

It was Downtown Gumtree Lane
Where I went to escape the pain
It’s where I went to get away from the fighting
Feeling as though my childhood was igniting.

I had no place to feel safe and protected
I was at home being disrespected and neglected
Mum and Dad never saw eye to eye
They’d start to yell and I’d start to cry.

Then one dry and dusty day
I took my bike and rode down a very steep brae
Then the street lights began to glow
And I found myself at the end of a road I didn’t know
All the gumtrees began to sway as it started to blow.

Then I saw it, my new special place.
It was an old run down house, no one was there
I went inside and it was just so bare.

But I had a feeling and a strong one at that
That this was the place were I could sit and relax
No worries, no fears, nothing to scare me
When I come here, I can be happy and free.

It needed a name and I knew just the one
It was Downton Gumtree Lane
It suited so well with the peeling paint and broken window panes
I looked out the window and saw dirt as dry as stale bread
And at the trees that were well and truly dead.

I got my bike and began to ride home
Back to a place that felt unlike my own
But now I have somewhere to go
When my parents decided to put on a show.
It was Downtown Gumtree Lane
Were I went to escape the pain.

By Frankie Doherty