IanG

Thanks for sharing this Willie. I know it makes no difference now but I hope your ancestor was reunited with his family

I like the way you spell out 'I'm fine' with initial letters of negative emotions.

I'm not great when it comes to the technicalities of poetry but I relate to the sentiments expressed here. There's emotional truth in it.

I can sympathise. Its especially hard in a lockdown as there's no work/school/university to take our minds off things.

There are so many issues in the news its impossible for one person to tackle them all. If you can't fix everything don't be hard on yourself.

You do a good job of evoking the forest and the cycle of decay and renewal.

I like your descriptions of the characters and of the setting. If I'd written it I'd have tried to prepare for the twist without giving too much away.

I'd mention a small ball lying in a corner of the sitting room. Voss could think the old lady has a granchild who called and forgot to take the ball home. Then at the end she says "Arthur's not my husband, he's my cat. That's his ball in the corner." That prepares for the twist without making it too obvious.

The captain stealing Vosse's thunder rings true.
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This is a plausible scenario and you evoke it with vivid detail.

A lot of people will relate to this. Music can help us to release powerful emotions when nothing else does.