Thursdays at St Kevin’s

22/11/2020 – Poem a Day Compilation



There’s a church across the road

Where they have meetings in the evening

For all different types of groups

And for all types of different people



The week starts with the men’s group

Advertised as a place of discovery

About what it is to be a man

And talk about things that interest men



They spill out and cross the road to my café

Still discussing what they did on the weekend

And boasting about their child’s achievement

While chowing down on burgers and fries.



Sometimes it’s the youth group

Meeting with the hip, young pastor

Who tries to lead them towards his god

Through games and slices of pizza



Some of them are only their for the friendships

Having no interest or belief in a higher power

And the chance to hang out in the corner booth

Sipping milkshakes bought with minimum wage



Another evening is the women’s group

Full of those once considered yummy mummies

But now slightly past societies idea of prime

But still with so much left to give



Their meeting is later at night than the others

After dinner is done with the family

Sometimes popping in for a glass of wine

Before heading home to do it again tomorrow



But Thursdays are a sober experience

With a mix of people with a common struggle

Who find comfort in the community

They have found in a small church hall



Some are religious but most are just lost

Caught up in a spiral they couldn’t control

Until they encountered the support

That this disparate group could give



They come in for coffee afterwards

In pairs or small groups mostly

With a weight seemingly lifted

From shoulders that have carried so much



Sometimes they come in alone

And stare intently into their coffee

The steam wafting by their faces

Contemplating the entire universe



The usuals have their ups and downs

Appearing with monotonous regularity

Or with a deep-seated sporadic zeal

Intertwined with bouts of reticence



Some of them are in the program

Stepping their way to sobriety

Others just want a safe place

To unburden their aching soul



They may come from different backgrounds

And having different standings in life

But they all share a common goal

And take a common oath



These are friendships born of adversity

Of compassion and empathy

Giving new life to those who seek it

With open hearts and open minds



But not all the stories from St Kevin’s

End happily ever after

Not every torment can be resolved

Nor every would healed



Some fall off the wagon

Some fall from grace

There are no miracles in those hallowed walls

Only tales of the tormented types



As I pour another coffee

I offer service with a smile

The smallest of gestures

For those most in need



Whether they pay with loose changed scrounged

From the backs of couches and under beds

Or with crisp new notes from ATMs

They are all the same to me



They are all starting afresh that night

As they have every other time

Their conscience has drawn them in

The that church hall across the way



I would not give up my Thursday nights

For any other shift in the week

They are my favourite customers

Even when they never say a word



Because it wasn’t all that long ago

I walked a mile in their shoes

And Thursdays at St Kevin’s

Was my respite from the world