Kelvin’s Banks

The River Kelvin plays second fiddle to the Clyde
[And if you think the Cart is bigger, then it’s third]
By drawing water from the city’s northern fringes
Channeling it through valleys, beneath so many bridges

The Kelvin with the Canal may be seen to flirt
As they each progress, as rivals in concert
At Maryhill the Forth & Clyde leaps straight across
Using the aqueduct to show who’s boss!

At Kelvindale the river once powered the paper mill
At North Woodside, flint grinding oft quite shrill
Thus the River ensured both work and play
Labour and green spaces to this very day

Esteemed thinkers reflected by this river’s banks
In the University or other famed think-tanks
Lord Kelvin, physicist whose renown is universal
And other learned academics with ideas rational

Bordering this river we find an acclaimed garden botanic
Leafy walkways nurturing tyrsts e’er so romantic
A haven for cyclists and walkers with their dogs
Jostle with health fanatics determined to enjoy their jog

So thanks for the Kelvin with its banks and verdant parks
Its bridges, its churches and other famed land-marks
As the water flows downstream to join up with the Clyde
Lovers of this watercourse can assuredly take pride

Ken Fisher