It's Still Life

Into the Bracken

There once was a man from otherwheres,
Who right boffled drank a bittle on dare.
He overget the breachy quite well,
But into a tye of brakes he fell,
And no twit or oration did we spare.

Sussex dialect translated into familiarity
oration – to make a fuss
otherwheres – elsewhere
overget – to overtake
bittle – a bowl of milk
boffle – baffle
brake – ferns or bracken
breachy – brackish water
tye – a field
twit – to tease or taunt

Just for fun, have a listen to a Sussex-dialect speaking farmer. The text with sound file is worth a read also. The sound file is at the British Library Collection of Speech and Dialect. Many thanks to Fandango for the opportunity to share the sounds of home.

Written for Fandango’s One Word Challenge: “dialect”. AI Digital Artwork is created using Midjourney. Imagery and poems ©Misky 2023 Shared on Twitter #amwriting @midjourney