Thursday 9 August 2012

How to wear a Union Jack

When I collected MissM from Heathrow
I warned her that she had returned
to a different country...


I said
"It is not just Olympic fever...
we are all members of Team GB."

MissM looked doubtful.


So...here we are,
the very next day,
in the Olympic Park
waiting for the stadium to open...


checking out the flower meadows
which just are as colourful
and beautiful and extraordinary
as everyone tells you...


watching Laura Trott
win another cycling Gold
on the big screen...


and suddenly MissM,
fresh from the wilderness of South America,
is signed up to Team GB


which is just in time
because now we are in the stadium
just to the right
of the Olympic flame.


From where we are sitting
you can see the track,
and the long jump,
and the discus final,
and, in the distance,
the high jump final


and it all feels like
Gullivers Travels in Lilliput
but with a wall of noise
that makes your head
rock back with shock.


Afterwards we walked out
into the darkness,
away from the electric red Orbit,
and the smiles of the volunteers,


taking our flags and caps
and a little bit of the Olympic magic
back into the new land of Team GB.

8 comments:

  1. She is beautiful.

    Is it warm sitting so near to all that fire?

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  2. Wonderful! Just absolutely wonderful! I have watched far more of this than I ever, ever envisaged and loved it.

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  3. Yes! We are all part of TeamGB - well, in this house we are, anyway.the small girls are running and jumping and being "athletes" every chance they get and the frequent refrain is "Arethe Olympics on the telly? Can we watch them?"

    It is wonderful, and hard to believe that next week we will be back to normal

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  4. I'm another who never watches the television but turns the Olympics coverage on whenever I'm in the house. Go Team GB!

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  5. One-oh-fourAugust 09, 2012

    We were there yesterday too! I could have waved at you from the other side of Park Live if I'd known! We saw a couple of hockey matches - the atmosphere was just incredible.

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  6. Oh my! She's REALLY gorgeous.
    We watch the Olympics a lot too. IT must thrilling to BE there, though.
    Show your pride!

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  7. Fabulous! What beautiful flowers! How exciting! And, I have to tell you how much I admire a country that will actually celebrate its national health service.

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  8. I am Loving living in Team GB!

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