OLD FRIENDS
..into the late hour
old friends talk,
pave the way
over the river
of grief
with a bridge
of words…
THE DISTANCE
…sometimes, the distance
between word and reality
is traversed by assurance
that in the end, the two
shall become one…
MAKING SENSE
…he sighs to himself
washes another plate
dries it and puts it away;
takes a chair
picks up a book
and flips a couple of pages,
closes it and sighs…
REFLECTION
…in the mirror of time
it is but seconds
back to the moment
she took her leave
and left him with
but a reflection
of herself…
NO ONE CALLING
…in these grey, low sheen evenings
when the breeze is not moving
through the trees,
all things seem to be
as they should
until the sound of no one
calling him indoors
is heard…
HOPE AND A PRAYER
…a gravel-voiced prayer
bounces off
the low-hung clouds;
hope was always hung
on the belief
the words would always
get through…
FAITH
…is it hard not to slip
on the granite floor of faith
when it is raining;
is it hard still to stand
in the space between
the bread and the stone…
HOPE AND A PRAYER
…a gravel-voiced prayer
bounces off
the low-hung clouds;
hope was always hung
on the belief
the words would always
get through…
SAILOR
…he learnt how to sail
on a smooth and calm sea
and what he learned
in that tranquillity
was his strength
when came the storm
in all its hostility…
WORKING ALONE
…it is good for a man
to labour under the sun
but she will not be
his reward when he has
ceased from his labours
and the day has ended
at the setting of that sun…
LONESOME NIGHT
…come down the darkness
on the single light
that stands in the window
holding back
the long and lonesome night…
DIRECTIONS
…once he was a young man
she walked by his young side
they came to where the road parted
she took the left turn and he the right…
MOVING HOUSE
…down an empty street
the slow footsteps of a pilgrim
looking for his old home
in the long afternoon shadows;
but his old home
was not where he left it…
AUTO PILOT
…his heavy heart
feels little of the pain,
he walks without moving,
sees everything and nothing,
eats but there is no hunger,
sleeps through the empty dream…
THE WIDE WORLD
…stars dance across the wide heavens
water flows swiftly down the wide river
love reaches tenderly across his wide heart
in the evening he is lost in the wide bed…
THE GOOD AND THE MEEK
…coffee cups in the kitchen sink
it's a short road to the life we seek
it's a small flame that flickers
lightly against our cheek
it’s another year gifted
to the good and the meek…
LEFT AND RIGHT
…a straight road runs by her gate
long shadows of the warm sun
grace the settled evening late;
the morning comes blue and light
there is distance here to be followed
the road runs both left and right…
…an empty chair
a quiet room,
somehow he knew
it would come to this,
somehow he knew
he would sit alone
in a silent
conversation…
GUIDING STAR
….he wanders along a side road
beneath a turbulent sky
keeps his eye upon the heavens
looking for that guiding star
that surely soon
must pass by…
NEVERTHELESS
…on the wind
all sorrow is borne,
rippling breeze
or howling storm,
it is sorrow nevertheless
it is sorrow to confess...
WHITE CLOUDS
…white clouds
dance in a blue sky
he looks up
wonders why,
can’t they hear
his deep heart cry,
who will dance with him
on high…
THE PICNIC TABLE
…I passed through
Rai Valley today,
the picnic table
was still standing,
scarred and burnt
but not too much
worse for wear,
I looked for her
but she
was not there…
FOR TOMORROW
…he lost the sound of her laugh
in the silence of his sorrow
but still it rang
a song on the breeze
this joy kept for tomorrow…
FADING BREATH
…silence settles
on that moment
standing there;
the rasp of breath
can be heard
fading in the air…
DARK DAYS
…dark were the days before him
little the light
she left behind
but little enough it was
to open the sight
of the blind…
MAKING IT THROUGH
…it’s a long road
narrow too
when you travel
on your own
you sometimes wonder
if you will
make it through
BY MY SIDE
…how are you travelling
i asked him
by a lone star
and a round moon
he replied
by the east wind
and the hurricane
by a narrow road
and a one lane bridge,
i travel by the song
she still sings
at my side…
IN HIS OWN SKIN
…tonight the moon is cold
it shimmers in the wilderness
among the fold of stars,
it calls him in
but for now
he’ll find warmth
in his own skin…
JEANIE @ 72
Do you remember the songs
we used to sing
when we were young
and our voices knew no bounds
and every tune was written
in the signature of love?
HALF OF THE MOON
…half a moon
in the sky tonight
half his heart
torn apart in two
half of this
half of that
half of nothing
half of everything
come again full moon
SILENT IS THE MOON
Tonight the moon is distant
It doesn’t touch him at all
It is hanging in the darkness
He can’t hear it when it calls
MARK OF THE HEART
…the mark of her heart
presses heavy into his
he wonders how without it
what he has left to give…
UNSLEEPING
Are you awake my brother
my dearest friend,
are your eyes weeping
small rivers of tears ?
I am too,
your broken-hearted friend
unsleeping
by the light of the moon
BIRDSONG
…there’s a bird song in the tree
don’t know what he’s singing for
I wish sometimes he would fly away
and just let me be…
TOUCH OF JOY
…the sun bids farewell
casts long shadows
across the sweep
of green lawn
an evening painted
on the artists canvas
almost picture perfect
but for the touch of joy
she once brought…
IN THE SHADOWS
…it does not make any sense
this silence,
this unmoving;
he casts his eye
about the room
hoping to catch
a whisper in its fall
or a glimpse of her
in the shadows
on the wall…
A STILL VOICE
…I’m counting the stars tonight
each one a single candle light
flickering in the chill black wind
that whispers her name so quiet…
NAKED
…he was naked in the rain
she was not there to cover him
flashing sheets of cold fire
tore his flesh, ripped his skin
in a red river of pain…
THE SILENCE
…the silence in the house
deafening
the fear of opening that door
crippling
the death of love on the floor
brutal
the broken heart weeping
irreparable…
SOLACE
….tonight I posted for him
across the star-lit heavens
the words of a broken heart,
love and friendship dancing
in the solace of sorrow…
BROKEN CUP
….streetlight
stands in its own shadow tonight
tree of life
stands beside its own thirst
our lips bleed
on the rim of a cup
cracked and chipped
and almost broken…
GOING HOME
…after the new rain
the river danced
and bounced
over boulders
and stones,
a sort of joyful scurry
like she was singing
the song
of going home.
SOME KINDA JOYFUL SONG
…she is at rest
in the side pocket
of my long coat;
take me down
those roads of
America she says,
take me to the places
where they sing
the songs that
danced me
to all the joys
I have known…
IN THE EMPTY ROOM
…in the silence
that hangs low
in the evening,
the sound of
her distant voice
rings like thunder
through
the empty room…
A LONG MOMENT
…moving pictures
capture
one single moment
that lasts
all the days
following…
A SLOW DAY
…each of these days
are as long as the next,
time has not trimmed
them of bewilderment,
has not taken from them
the slow minutes that
make up his day…
ALONE
…pull the curtains
no moon beans
dancing on my floor
no stars to watch me
turn the key
lock the front room door…
IF THE STARS SHOULD FALL
…if the stars should fall
and bring to earth
her distant heart,
would you hold her dearly,
would you say, my love
why did we have to part…
APART
…it is quiet here
beneath the low hanging
evening cloud,
it lies like a carpet
smothering my heart
and I don’t know
how to feel
and I don't’ know
why we must
be apart…
ENDLESS
…there is no end
to the day
stretched from
shore to sea
we lie on the beach
asking nothing
of time
that drags the sun
across the sky,
but even so
she will not be here
at the end...
SWEET DREAM
…who broke into the sweet dream
stole the contented slumber
from the hours before the dawn
and brought the ever-after
to a cruel and bitter end….
MAKING SENSE
…some things you can touch
some things you can feel
somethings are cold like stone
and others are beyond reach,
we walk the fine line
between all these things
trying to find some sense of them
where no sense can be found…
WAVE UPON WAVE
…waves roll in
on a bleak and grey
coastline
driven by the wind
from the east,
he is counting each one,
up to seven,
there he catches his breath
and finds a brief moment of relief…
SWEET DREAM
…who broke into the sweet dream
stole the contented slumber
from the hours before the dawn
and brought the ever after
to a cruel and bitter end….
SONG OF JOY
…the song of joy echoes
off the dark sky,
the stars hold the tune
somewhere in the distance;
he gazes upon the heavens
catches a faint note of song,
he knows he will sing it again
when the night is less dark…
LITTLE THINGS
…too soon yet he knows
to comprehend anything
of grief and loss
but still, the little things
hurt like crazy –
eating weekend lunch
on his own,
boiling the jug,
a pot of tea for one…
THE LONG NIGHT
…how long will this night be, he asks himself
as he pulls the covers over half the bed,
places the pillow under his head,
listens for her footsteps on the stairs…
BLURRED HORIZON
…the line on the horizon is blurred
the distance is not clear
but look again and see
is that not a hand hovering there
cupped with cloud and water
for that heart cracked and broken
by drought and despair…
IN EVERY STAR
…in every star that shines tonight
I see her face in the twinkle
of the yellow light;
I reach to touch her cheek
the distance is so wide
somewhere in the heavens
time is dancing with eternity…
SUPERMARKET SHOPPING
…he pushes the supermarket trolley
on his own
takes from the shelves
one of this
one of that
one of those;
he pauses
thinks to himself
what happened to
two of each….
COUNTING TIME
…he counts the minutes first
then the hours,
he wonders
what has become of time;
he tracks the sun
across the sky
follows the moon
with sleepless eye…
THE SONG
…to live by the song
is to dance to the tune
that the band plays
in the light of the moon;
but when the stage goes quiet
it's a sad note that rings
and there comes an end
to the song we sing…
WORKING MAN
…at the end of the day
he finds his way back home,
he knows
there will be no one there
to open the door
but he has a key
somewhere
and can let himself in
and lay his pallet
on the floor…
WALKING THE DOG
…he is walking the dog,
the dog is walking him,
they stride out together
not saying too much,
around the block they go
for this is the way they know…
RAVEN
…the wilderness
is no place
to build a home
but all wayfarers,
passing through,
some shelter
will need,
some place for the raven
to bring
the gathered seed…
WEARY
…in the weariness
that brings day’s end,
he comes looking for her
to rest in the words
of her sure voice
but the sound
of his own silence
is the only voice
he hears…
SLEEP
…sleep my friend
as best you can
beneath the covers
of loss
beneath the dream
that swears
you feel the touch
of her hand…
PIECES
…my God,
you know how this works
better than I;
in your hands
I place my heart -
all of the pieces…
LAMENT
…tonight the wind wails
a lonesome lament
a song of despair
raging against
the hollow place
that once held
the echo of her heart…
FOOTSTEPS
…in the small hours
on the backroads
of my mind
the sound of her footsteps,
somewhere beyond here,
heading for home…
EBB TIDE
…in the low ebb of the tide
the rocks and reefs
of our hearts
are exposed,
we travel a little wiser then
as we make our way
along the coast…
DOING ALRIGHT
…in the short days following
I ask how are you doing
and you reply
I’m doing alright
but neither of us know
what alright really means …
FATHER’S HOUSE
…in my Father’s house tonight
it seems all the rooms are empty,
for when I call there is no reply
and yet I know
there is someone near...
EMPTY HEART
I shall see you tomorrow dear friend
Nothing will change I know
She will not be there to greet me
Nor to make us a cup of tea;
But we shall learn together
How to wear an empty heart.
LAUGHTER LIKE FLOWERS
Her laugh,
Like a bunch of fresh flowers,
Could change anything,
Move a grey cloud,
Hold back the rain,
Postpone the sunset
Make the garden bloom.
SKY ON FIRE
The sky is on fire
The clouds burnt red
Out on the deck we sit
And cast words like sticks
Into the warm fire
Of our times.
THE FLAME
The sky is on fire
Even our tears cannot
Subdue the flame
Or wipe away the stories
That have carried us
Through these years
LIGHT SWITCH
The corridor is dark,
there is no light switch
on the wall,
where are you Lord my God?
Do you hear me when I call?
THIS HOUR OF DARKNESS
In this hour of darkness
When no travelling can be done
Prophets words appear as lamps
Guiding those on stumbling stone
Who wrestle in the dust alone.
BRAVE HEART
Take the blue sky,
cover it with grey clouds,
let them hang low and heavy
over my heart,
let me cry out loud.
PIECES
What of this broken heart
torn apart in two,
I try to gather up the pieces
to bring them back to you.
GLASS HEART
The broken shards
of a glass heart
tear soft flesh
to pieces;
they draw blood,
an anguished cry,
forsaken
in the moment.
CUP OF…
Who poured this vinegar
in a cup chipped and cracked
and handed it, an answer,
will no one take it back?
RIVER SONG 2
The song of the river was loud,
urgent, after the new rain fell,
I sat on the rocks at the water’s edge
and added my tune as best I could
but my voice was drowned
by the deep river sound
and the song that the river sang.
NO REASON
Paint the sky black
Take the sun and the moon and the stars
And lock them in a box.
KAREN
Beneath the yellow moon
In an empty sky
I hear the silence cry
RIVER SONG 2
The song of the river was loud,
urgent after the new rain fell,
I sat on the rocks at the water’s edge
and added my tune as best I could
but my voiced was drowned
by the deep river sound
and the song that the river sang.
RIVER SONG
After the new rain
The river danced and bounced
Over the boulders and stones
A sort of joyful scurry
Like the song of going home
NEW RAIN
I sat down by the river
I watched the river flow
It was after the new rain
I pondered how deep
it would go
HUX
Child to a man
begins to grow
measures the
distance
across the ocean
he rows.
UNUSED WORDS
A mouthful of unused words
cannot be easily consumed,
we will surely choke on them
if they are not spoken in time’
if the silence is not broken.
A FRIENDSHIP
Darkness follows the sun down
on new year’s day
friendship slips over the horizon
it is here to stay;
somethings you can do without
while others are the essence
of what darkness and light
and these days are all about.
LEGACY
Here we are in the royal courts
serving with respect and care
the young queens and kings
of our own future
SAILOR
He is sailing back
to the shore
across the seven seas
he has roamed
he sets his feet
on the dry land
for now he says
he will call it home.
THE LONE SINGER
She sings a song
I can never sing
for I did not learn how;
some say it is not too late
but the circle
has been broken
and the song is hers alone.
PLAYING WITH FIRE
He is chasing the wind on the water
He is calling up the breeze
If the storm should knock him over
He will crawl on his hands and knees
FORECAST
The weather gods
They sit in high places
They open and close windows
At their will.
MEASURING TIME
On the mountain
the law becomes flesh,
the years a road map
by which time unfolds,
and you my son
carve an ascending path
by fear and wonder,
through light and dark,
to heart and home.
WHAT IS DUE
Looking back on the way he has come,
he asks for forgiveness
where he needs to be forgiven
and asks for praise too
where praise should be given.
CHOICE
We carry the weight of the years
the solid stone is sometimes
split in two and the choice
is between what has been
and what is to come.
WOOD SHED
The wet and rotten wood
is cleared from the old shed
to make way for the
new season’s fire stack;
but first
the leaky roof
is repaired.
TAROT
She burns incense,
says the cards speak
louder than the word;
me, I’m not so sure
for I have never heard
a card speak louder
than my heart.
HE WAS
He was who he was
no matter
where he was
HOLES
The stars burnt holes
in the darkness,
a sea of flame,
the light of eternity.
DROUGHT
Slowly, the rain fell,
each drop
a ten cent coin
that bounced
on the hard ground.
MIHI
She took the microphone
and turned it into a song,
she danced and she sang
until she had nothing left,
until our eyes wept.
STONES
Six solid stones are split in two
A universe of grey, a heart of blue
All by fire are consumed
OF LOVE
Of love
what is known
except that
it travels a long road,
carries a full load
and rests easy
beneath the sweep
of golden stars.
TRAVEL ON
When I die
clear the path
of weeds
for your journey
travels on.
IN THE END
We have all fallen short,
the pros and the cons
those for, those against,
the reds and the blues
the blacks and the whites;
the curtain drops
on us all.
A GIFT
I am spending gold
found on the roadside,
a sprinkling of dust,
a blessing that fell
while I was sleeping.
LOOKING BACK
I am lost
in those distant days
weaving through
the way of dreams
dreamt with lovers
and with friends
bathed in the songs
only angels sing.
STAIRS
Sometimes
you walk
up the stairs
sometimes
you walk down;
myself,
I walk back
to the future,
take your hand
and show you around.
WISDOM
The old man, in his wisdom,
mumbled to the young child
‘To live as best you can
by the light of your own path
is reward enough, is the gift of gold
offered by kings to kings.’
THE ROAD
I look back
on the way
I have come;
forgive me
where I need
to be forgiven,
praise me
where I am
worthy of praise.
SHEPHERD
He won the congregation over
led them like a true shepherd
out from the fold
to the wide, open field
of vast horizons
and undreamt
possibilities
and breathed again.
FURTHER YET
When I die
clear the path
of weeds
for you must
journey further
yet.
MIRACLE
He came looking for a miracle
upon a sea of glass,
saw his own reflection there
and then he knew at last.
EMERGING
I am not broken
or defeated
although
I have been
down that road
before.
LOST
...they didn’t know
if where they were
where they should
have been
or if they should
look elsewhere
just to know
what they had seen...
SUMMER
Everyone in their camper vans,
everyone driving to the promised land
where life and love
dance hand in hand.
SUMMER BEACH
An old man dreaming
of the days
when it all began…
SETTING OUT
She cross the threshold,
tentatively at first
feeling her way
towards another country
drawing water from another well
to satisfy her thirst
THE ROPE
I was anchored to a tablet of stone
Until someone cut the rope
Said I could make it on my own
ANCHOR
I dropped my anchor
On a tablet of stone
There the runes were carved
Deep into my bones.
DO NA
…she adjusts the load she has carried,
smiles at the distance she has come,
setS her face to the road ahead,
goes looking for the warm rays of the sun…
TRAVELLING SURE
Anchored in the harbour
of family,
sailing in the sloop
of friendship,
the horizon was always
within reach.
ONE LOVE
A single birth
a solitary star
a host of angels
a simple song
the greatest love.
DREAM
The moon stands guard
over the early summer evening,
in the distance
the diesel locomotive
rumbles across my sleepless heart
like the thunder of a dream
holding back
from the pale light of dawn.
TRAPPED
A stone wall surrounds him,
a prison without doors
or bars of iron
and if we could
we would break him out
but he cannot run
for little he knows
of what this is all about.
WELL DEEP
As clear as crystal water
his eyes deep as a well
some secrets
cannot be spoken
for silence
cannot be broken.
MIND GAMES
There was little
he could remember,
his mind
had travelled on,
he was somewhere
down the highway
humming
a forgotten song.
FOG
His mind was misted over
by the long miles to the top
here was everything
he once understood
but now, everything
has stopped.
LIKE A GLOVE
Sometimes
it wasn’t a natural fit
the old guys hand
and mine
but we worked on it
together,
knitted father and son
like a glove.
THE CIRCLE
Hope hangs
on the horizon,
fire burns
on that eternal shore
where the stones
are stacked in a circle
and not one of them
is cracked or broken.
BATTERED
We are battered
like small boats
on the ocean
just trying
to make it
to the shore.
BROKEN
I am who I am
inside this covering
of skin;
they say I have
been broken
by the burden
of my sin.
WHAT WILL BE
Nothing we can
do or say
will ever wake up
the evening
or kiss the morning
good night,
what will be, will be
in darkness
or in light.
KNOCKED DOWN
He was knocked down,
broken to the core,
trampled on
and spat upon,
left stranded
on the shore.
THE NEXT DAY
Waiting for time
to clear the way
for all the dreams
that shine
like stars of hope,
the guiding lights
of another day.
ELECTRICITY
He crossed the river
together with the old guy,
they were looking for
some electricity
to shed some light
on truth and mystery.
AFTERMATH
When I die
tend to the garden
for you must eat still.
: Urgent Call to Action: Block the Pandemic Treaty NOW - Sign:
THE LONG POEM
They gathered around the word,
the line and the whole poem
these thirty years past
printed on every line
of their faces
and on the pages
of their hearts.
A QUIET WEEK
She was planning a quiet week
resting in the arms of the one
who quelled the storm,
listening for the words
that ushered in the calm,
breaking bread and wine
in the evening.
REST
Did she make it home,
find the rest
she was looking for;
were the roses
in full bloom,
their scent wafting
from room to room.
THE MOUNTAIN
The mountain calls for
a slow climb,
a deep breath
and a whispered prayer
that brushes
the face of God.
THE HOUSE
In the house of words
We find shelter
In the house of words
We find our heart
COMFORT
In the restless slumber
of a dark night,
an unspoken prayer,
a calm faith,
a covering
of warmth and
protection.
SURVEILLANCE
Freedom erased
from the printed page,
the iron chains
of slavery
they forge still
in the fires
of the blacksmiths rage.