At Netherwood in Newtonmore, the Highland air is still,
Five friends arrive with books in hand and time enough to fill.
There’s Jamie, David, Iain, Euan, and Robert too,
A brotherhood of loyalty, with spirits bright and true.

They gather by the fireside as the winter shadows creep,
With stacks of heavy volumes and a promise they will keep:
To journey from the Russian plains where Tolstoy’s prose takes flight,
To Asterix the Gaul and puns that keep the mood so light.

They toast to years of friendship with a glass of chilled Crémant,
Refined in taste and spirit, they have everything they want.
And when the night grows deeper and the heavy chapters end,
Decaffeinated coffee warms the heart of every friend.

The screen begins to flicker with a tale of ice and snow,
Of Doctor Zhivago and a love from long ago.
As “Lara’s Theme” comes drifting through the quiet Highland air,
They sit in shared perfection, glad to be exactly there.

Iain Smith {with a little help from AI :)}