Hi, I'm Jon Bratton. Welcome to my very verse-atile ditties - versus -poems website which brings you the following free online verses, poems

Mens 18th,21st,30th,40th,50th,60th,70th,80th,90th,100th Birthday Verses, Poems

Womens 18th,21st,30th,40th,50th,60th,70th,80th,90th,100th Birthday Verses, Poems

Young Persons 18th,21st, Birthday Verses, Poems

Leaving Job, New Job, New Home, Retirement Verses, Poems

Congratulations Wedding / Sympathy Funeral Verses, Poems

FREE TO USE PROVISO

If you are a Crafter or Private Individual you are free to use these verses, poems and wordings, without asking permission...

These poems and verses are also free to Card Makers who sell cards on a semi commercial basis (i.e. sales of not more than 50 cards per week)

but note copyright law applies to

* the body of work in parts and as a whole

* individual verses, poems so far as commercial companies are concerned

I bring you greetings card and scrapbooking wishes, verses, poems, quotes, messages, wordings, sayings, text and greetings for, to and from mom or mum and dad, parents, fiance, fiancee, spouses, husband or wife, friends, grandma or nan and grandad or grandpa, brothers, sisters , children, grandchildren, best friend, mothers, sons or daughters. All are free, online and printable and all are funny tributes for birthdays, especially 18th, 21st, 30th, 40th, 50th. 60th, 70th, 80th, 90th, 100th, retirement, leaving a job , wedding, wedding anniversary, sympathy and Christmas

For 35 years I've penned personalised verses poems for myself and others. Look at the bottom of this page if you want to know more background

These verses / poems are very specific to the people they were written for but people are people and there's a bit of everyone in all of us ( profound already) The verses / poems are untouched, straight out of the drawer, except that the names have been changed to protect the identity of the people involved. The pics are from the original first drafts and in some cases, the customer chose to use a photographic head

They are offered just as they are.The mens' birthday verses / poems section has many references to football fans, beer bellies, doing DIY (good or bad), going to the pub, falling asleep in the chair, snoring, being a kid at heart---so, thats almost every bloke on the planet--right girls?

Here's an example of a wedding anniversary poem, verse tribute to a married couple who spend a lot of time apart because he's away at sea

Rhonda and Charlie Tomkins

Have a marriage made in heaven

4 years they've been together

That's not bad...out of seven

The heart grows fonder, says Rhonda

And Charlie loves her piles

There's something special between 'em

....about 700 miles

For Charlie's a Masterseaman

(How's that for a bit of flattery)

While Rhonda works for Duracell

They're just an old salt and battery

Each fortnight they get together

A precious time... very dear

Cos the 'Italia' costs a fortune

For scran, wine and beer

When time it comes for Charles to leave

Of course he likes to dally

He makes a bee line for his favourite place

His own Rhonda Valley

We've tried hard to avoid the insults

We've managed, we think, to fail

Have a really smashin' Christmas

With love from Jim and Gail

Here's another example of a retirement verse poem written for a retiring policeman, who was a keen runner, walker, gardener where 'his feet' was taken as the theme

You spent years as a bobby

Patrolling on the beat

Dishing out punishment..

...to your poor aching feet

You've done many a half marathon

Pounding along the street

You've walked miles round dale and mountain

We feel sorry for your feet

You're keen on growing spuds and things

Ankle deep in peat

Fair enough you're keen on vegetables

But think of your plates of meat

Sup beer, enjoy the grandkids

Give yourself a treat

Take advantage of your bus pass

Get slippers for your feet

Happy retirement Ernie

Your working life's complete

A career spanning 50 years

Now that's what we call a feat !!

My e-mail address is jon@jbratton.com

More on the background to this body of work

For a few years I produced these ditties professionally, along with Jim Harker, a talented artist. Together we produced Doodle Ditties. He did the doodle which was a caracature (the word "doodle" does not do justice to the cartoons Jim produced.) If you want to check out Jim's normal work click here I did the ditty which was usually 5 verses / poems or so based on what I was told of the "victim", The final product was a framed up gift. There's many a downstairs loo still sporting a framed up doodle ditty. That was back in the '90's and, ever since, the drafts of these verses / poems have lain forlone and unread in a desk drawer.So why dig 'em out now? Because there's been a huge growth in crafts, and card making in particular, and comments on the craft forums would suggest that there is a demand for a collection of card verses / poems. My desk drawer sprang to mind.