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1.3k · Oct 2013
Clash of Cultures
Nick Strong Oct 2013
This is a note,
That I wrote,
With the finest nib.
Then mailed to you.
Which you read,
Then pondered,
And mulled,
Contemplated.
Then wrote
A carefully
Crafted reply.
You paused just,
A second,
Before pressing
SEND.

    ©  Nick Strong 2014
1.3k · Dec 2015
Granda's Coat (draft)
Nick Strong Dec 2015
Hanging by the post box red front door
Since 71
A long trench coat, shade of green
With flat cap on top, peak smudged
From fingers that had gripped
Pulled it from a head,
Both, an umbra of post war world gloom
To the boy, now the man who looks at it
Memories contained within its pockets and creases
Of boiled sweets handed to his bairns
Of neatly folded plastic bags,
For the necessary emergencies
He was so convinced he’d meet
Of hands that belonged to the coat,
Strong, firm that tousled this man’s hair,
Yet gentle and playful, full of fun
Of the head that wore the cap, the grin,
The mischievous glint, when his Peg wasn’t looking
As he slipped some coins into this boy’s tiny hand
Stories told, of times before the war,
Of stopping trams, driving pigs through N’castle
As a butcher’s Boy, on slaughter day
Of the day he met his Meg, down by the coast
Of showing off, and coming a cropper
And oh, how his Meg laughed
A coat holding so much of the past,
Of shipbuilding by the dark, ***** Tyne,
Boats that loomed over the houses
Taking this boy to see them launch
Dreaming of exotic, oriental places
He would never visit
Of betting slips, crumpled in pockets
From long gone nags, who caught his eye
Torn envelopes with Megs writing,
Bread - brown, tin of carnation milk (small)
Rich tea, sultanas, flour – plain
A use for his plastic bags,
My Granda's love was called both Meg and Peg.
1.2k · Oct 2013
Breakfast
Nick Strong Oct 2013
Marmalade,
Tangy orange heaven.
Chunked to the max
Smothers toast.
A bite, a crunch.
That citrus burst.
A sigh,
A slurp of coffee.
Ready to tackle the day.

    ©  Nick Strong 2014
1.2k · Mar 2015
First Day of Spring
Nick Strong Mar 2015
A sprinkling of ice sugar across the moor tops
A gentle reminder, that winters fingers still grip
Despite the buds, bursting through warming sods
Waking greenery deepening, life forging ahead
The day slightly longer, than yesterday,
Warmth in a higher sun, gaining strength
Sky less matt grey, a brighter hue of blue
Urgent bird’s darting, dancing movements
Marking territory with a sweeter song
This the first day of spring
Written, after looking at the snow on the distant hills, and contemplating the first daffodil in the garden.
1.2k · May 2015
ConServant
Nick Strong May 2015
Fools

Have you not realized
Conservative
Conservant
Con the servant
Oh I hate politics that rules at the expense of humanity.
1.2k · Nov 2013
Vulnerable
Nick Strong Nov 2013
I ought to say,
That this day,
I opened my heart.
Cracked it in two,
For you.

©  Nick Strong 2014
1.2k · Jun 2014
A Perfect Day
Nick Strong Jun 2014
Wandering along this dusty path,
Humming tunes, with the breeze,
Upon your shoulder.
Makes the day seem real,
Dirt covered boots scuffed,
Embedded by years travelling.
Carrying all that you need,
Stopping for no-one,
Just a walking and a humming.
The perfect day away.

© Nick Strong 2014
1.1k · Feb 2015
A Memory
Nick Strong Feb 2015
Yesterday is far too far away to touch,
A fleeting memory, just beyond grasp
Slipping, sliding further away from the moment
When words left tongues to touch ears
Now all that’s left, a hazy snatched picture
Of a portion of perfection, frozen in this head
A reflection on a memory
Nick Strong Jul 2015
Clouds, a grey dull today
That’s better than yesterday
Or twas it the day, before,
Or even the day before, the day before
The clouds a ***** shade of coal
Threatening Thor’s thunder,
Urging the dogs to bark
The birds to scuttle for hedges
Maybe tomorrow the clouds
Will be less intent
On thunderous outbursts
Instead scud lightly across the brightest
Of blue, like all good clouds should
To please the eye, behind the shades
I’ve told myself it can’t rain forever
Despite Saint Swithern’s curses
That the fifty shades of grey felt pens
Will run out of rainy ink tomorrow
1.1k · Apr 2014
Lemonade (10w)
Nick Strong Apr 2014
Ice chilled glass of lemonade,
Refreshes from inside, the soul.
1.0k · Jun 2014
Football (10w)
Nick Strong Jun 2014
Leather ball pointlessly kicked around,
But oh what tremendous fun!
Nick Strong May 2015
Sat at the station,
With nowhere to go

Trains
Arrive to depart
And
Bustling commuters
Phones attached
Rush on by
Sat at the station
Nowhere to go
Fear etched in the lines
Of a
Face lost in time
Eyes seeing,
Their spark gone
Empty costa cup
Gripped by a hand
Nails black, skin blistered
Newspaper, a forgotten date
Lies next to
Cracked leather boots
Soaked then scorched
Too many times

Sat at the station
With nowhere to go
Part one of three , little word portraits
1.0k · Oct 2013
SMM
Nick Strong Oct 2013
SMM
Slow moving music.
Sleepy musical mood.
Sweeping manoeuvring minuet.
Soaring melody momentarily.
Sensitive meaningful melodies.
Sound mad maiden.
Soul musical mate.
Soul madly made.
Soul Mate Mine.

    ©  Nick Strong 2014
Nick Strong Sep 2014
When I peer into those eyes, so full of life
I ask did you have a name, or is it long since lost.
Did your mother hold you and call you pet, or
Were you the forgotten one, left to fend?
Where you presented wooden soldiers, for
One remembered birthday long, long ago.
Do I see a soldier boy, fighting in a field?
That’s long, long forgotten in a distant land
When I look into those eyes, please remember
That I have forgotten you.
Imagine as you read, looking into the eyes of a Victorian Boy staring from a photgraph
984 · Sep 2015
The Ghost Story (Draft Two)
Nick Strong Sep 2015
Outside, cold icy fingered wind, bites
Whistles down stone chimneys, inside
Amber flames flickering in the hearth,
Shadows dance across the wall,
Candle sputtering in the draught
Casting an eerie glow cross the page
The book being read, strange tales
Outside the wind surges, lashing
Rain against the leaden panes
Warm and cosseted against the storm
The page is turned, the story continued
A single scratch at the window,
And a rattling of the latch
Heavy door squeaks open,
On old heavy hinges
The book drops …
Fingers slowly slide round
Gripping the doors edge
Skin grey, taught against bones
The Reader’s eyes riveted
On this unfolding chapter
Second draft of poem, to show how it develops. At this point I want to build the atmosphere through the weather at the beginning, and am also thinking about an ending, with , or without a twist.
967 · Jun 2014
At Sea
Nick Strong Jun 2014
White tipped, towering waves,  
Crashing down upon the bow,
Tossing, twisting, turning,
Wood creaks, groans, straining
Against unnatural movements.
Yellow coated men, cling for life;
Whilst the captain, etched by fear,
Fights to keep the stricken vessel afloat,
Beneath  howling angered, skies.

Meanwhile the kraken roars,
From the deep abyss.

© Nick Strong 2014
Nick Strong Jan 2014
The Card Sharp and the Sharp Shooter.

The Card Sharp
When all the cards fall,
You’re left with an ace up your sleeve,
Nowhere to go, with everything to explain
And now you look towards the future
Down the barrel of some gun
My life one sharp trick
Ends here with a sharp shooter
Thought I’d die in bed someday
Well now I’m going with my boots on,
All for the love of a card or two.

The Sharp Shooter
A quiet shot or two, passing time,
Cards on the table, chips strewn there.
A moment of silence, disbelief,
As a card falls from a sleeve,
Snap of the wrist, pistol drawn,
Chair kicked back, shot fired
A hand drops, cards slip to the floor,
Lifeless eyes, body slumped,
A dead night, for a Card Sharp.

©  Nick Strong 2014
952 · Jun 2014
There are things...
Nick Strong Jun 2014
There are things I need to tell you,
Like how the moon orbits just for you.
Or why weeds grow between flagstones.
But all I can say is nothing at all.

There are sounds I need you to hear,
Like the crashing of the waves on New Jesery shore.
Or a nightingales song breaking the sound of silence.
But I know you wont hear them

There are beautiful pictures I need to show
Like the breaking dawn across an island bay.
Or the spring sun, dappling a forest floor.
But I know you wont look in the places I do.

When you asked why I wanted you too?
All I could say was, tis how I see the world.

© Nick Strong 2014
947 · Apr 2014
The Sculpture
Nick Strong Apr 2014
I stand in a room full of people,
And want to shout your name,
But can't.
My throat frozen in a,
Two thousand year scream.

Sightless eyes, surveying,
Trying to catch that knowing
Wink, uncertain smile,
With no way of telling,
Whether it’s been seen.

Memories of times gone by,
Caught between whispers,
And a silent scream,
From a silent tongue,

Frozen in alabaster.

© Nick Strong 2014
Thinking the thoughts of a statue frozen in time
916 · Jan 2014
Insomniac
Nick Strong Jan 2014
I am a worshipper of the moon.
A seeker of the darkness of night.
A creature that side steps light,
A keeper of the shadows.
Watcher of silver moon streaked meadows,
A subservient to the crepuscular goddess.

©  Nick Strong 2014
913 · May 2015
A moment in Time
Nick Strong May 2015
Old brown leather gloves,
Hung over the back of a desk chair
Leather on both, cracked with age
Horse hair stuffing protruding
Maps scattered open across the desk,
Edges curled and yellowing
Marks in the margin, scrawled in ink,
The pen dropped by the well, top left casually aside
A photograph of people unknown,
Smiling by the dunes, beach covered in wire
Box Browning, gathering dust sits on the desk, on top
Of a hard backed notebook, marked ’39 –‘41

A moment frozen in time
Based on a picture of an old study, left by the owner  as if he would return one day, but never did
902 · Dec 2019
Ode to St. Nick
Nick Strong Dec 2019
Talk to me, talk to me of Old St. Nick
Talk to me of Sinterclaus
Of Mikulas, Pere Noel, or Babbo Natale

Talk to me of candles, christingle and a silent night
Talk to me of crackers, carols and calamities
Talk to me of snow, sleighs, and stars
Talk to me of Christmas cards, wrapping paper
Talk to me of gold, old spice and mice
Talk to me of icing, icicles
igloos, ivy
Holly
Oh sweet Hollie
Tots of Drambuie
Marmalade and toast

Talk to me of Philip Scholfield
Carols From Kings
Mary Poppins
Scrooge
Festive films
Radio Times
And things that are too pretty
Lights, nights
Hark, Dark
barking dogs
tinsel
Tinsel Town
Wolves at the door
Salvation Army playing once more

Talk to me
Talk to me
Cream Crackers, cheese
Frosty mornings, old knees

Talk to me of snow covered alpine forests
Gateaux
Cherries
walnuts and berries
Festive fun,
A seasonal run
Of All Gold telly
With a full belly
Farts, sprouts
Turkey that tastes just like chicken
Oh talk to me of
Terry Wogan
Rosh Jogan
Grogan Josh
Last minute deals
Black Friday
White Friday
And all the Cyber Mondays

Talk to me of
Happy Mondays
Dancing Bez
In a Festive Fez

Talk to me
Talk to me
Of Festive time
Late nights
Early mornings
Beer
Cheer
All in entertainment

Oh talk, TALK to me
Of hangovers,
sleep overs
gloves
mittens
and cute kittens

Oh talk to me of
fake Chanel
Faux Fur and underwear
Celvin Klein

Talk to me , Talk to me of
Jonah Lewie
Bony M
The Pogues
and all those rogues
Fairy tale of New York
Stop the Cavalry
Mary's Boy Child
And the
Spaceman who came riding by

Oh talk, Talk , Talk to me
of places, and spaces We all know
Christmas markets
Tesco, Aldi and John Lewis Adverts showing
Christmas is coming
Christmas is coming
Christmas is coming
Chris
Oh talk to me
Oh talk to me of old St. Nick

Talk to me
Talk to me
Eggnog
Talk to me
Talk to me
Bah humbug
Talk to me
Talk to me
Happy Christmas
Read aloud at speed. Enjoy!
884 · Nov 2014
All She Remembered
Nick Strong Nov 2014
Ashen faced, slumped there,
Clutching a crumpled
Brown telegram
No words she uttered
No tears, fell from those brown eyes
The words on the paper
Lodged in her throat
K I A
Blocking a silent scream of anguish.
She felt her fingers open,
The impersonal note dropping to
The cold stone floor, making no noise
To disturb the silent cry locked within her.
........
In the years and decades that follow
All that she could remember
Was the dreadful silence, of
The painful scream locked within her,
On the day she lost her sweetheart.
A war poem from a different perspective
869 · Nov 2013
My Childhood Hero
Nick Strong Nov 2013
Caught a glimpse of my childhood hero
As he strutted along the path today.
He created pictures from words
Made this world come alive, with
A magic that has never matched.

As he swaggered past me today
He looked old, tired and grey
Snippets of songs, floated through my mind,
Stirring long forgotten memories
Made by the man I saw today, long, long ago.

There was a touch of aged slowness in,
The walk of the man I called hero,
What had happened to the, man I remembered
As invincible and beyond question
In that childhood world of mine?

And then I saw a wink, a twinkle,
A spark of dancing magic and
That mischievous glint,
In the icy clear blueness of the eyes,
Of the man
I am proud to call my childhood hero.

    ©  Nick Strong 2014
828 · Oct 2013
When the World Fell Apart
Nick Strong Oct 2013
When the world fell apart, no-one listened
To the splintering timbers, to the cracking ice,
When the world fell apart, no-one noticed
The carbon tasting water or the smoke filled air
When the world fell apart, no-one spoke,
Of rancid, rotting plastics, or net drowning dolphins.

When the world fell apart, everyone forgot her name,
EARTH.

    ©  Nick Strong 2014
824 · Nov 2013
Self Poetrait
Nick Strong Nov 2013
Rumbled, crumbled and torn,
Shuffling 'cross life's shelf.
Tottering on the edge.
Mind full of jumble,
Buzzing like a bumble bee....

    ©  Nick Strong 2014
792 · Jan 2015
ramblings of an Insomniac
Nick Strong Jan 2015
Sleep, torn eyes wait for the darkness
Searching for signs of dreams coming
Waiting, wondering when they don't
Tired, hungry eyes looking for sheep
To jump gates that never open










Moonbeams peak between slats
Wakening, the woken
Thoughts creep towards the dawn
Side stepping any opportunity
Of resting, in the cool of dark.
Tonight,
I wished I walked amongst the stars
When sleep stays at bay
I'd glide across the wide expanse
Of heavenly jewel studded ocean
Converse with the Great Bear
Query Aquarius about moon pathways
Until then I’ll lie in wait
For first chinks of the day.
Insomnia a writers curse or a blessing?
785 · Jul 2015
Stormy Weather
Nick Strong Jul 2015
Sun lit green trees highlighted
By a background of black
Clouds tearing apart
Drops crash earth bound
Explode on leaves
Turning dust to mud
Trickles into streams
Rivers into torrents
Pealing the skies
With cracked bells
Gutters overflow
Appearing puddles
Become ponds
Ponds burst banks
Forlorn plants droop
767 · Nov 2013
A Moment
Nick Strong Nov 2013
Every minute,
Spent in a moment.
Every moment,
Is precious, when,
Spent with you.

©  Nick Strong 2014
765 · Dec 2013
Tomorrow Is Christmas Morn
Nick Strong Dec 2013
Broken men, whose forgotten thoughts,
Lead only to slurred words, and mistaken gestures,
Angry selfish voices, and thrown words.
Make the night scream,
With sirens, and the
Only
Flashing lights are blue.
Broken bottles, smashed glasses,
Tell tales of a thousand broken dreams,
Lost amidst the festive spirit, the fights, and the brawls.
As the song says ‘Here’s to another one’
Jostling crowds, crammed into bars,
Where there’s no place to stand, amidst,
Short skirted stiletto heeled girls,
Living out the old adage ‘Be merry!’
And
The black suited bouncer thinks
‘Give me the peace of a litter strewn street,
And the morning after,
For tomorrow is Christmas morn.’

©  Nick Strong 2014
711 · Apr 2014
10 (w)
Nick Strong Apr 2014
No unecessary word,
Is needed,
Except,
Those that really
Count.


© Nick Strong 2014
697 · Apr 2014
Mirror 10 (W)
Nick Strong Apr 2014
The mirror told no lies,
To the face it replicated.

© Nick Strong 2014
692 · May 2014
Ghosts
Nick Strong May 2014
Make yourself busy, pretend that I’m not there,
Despite a flickering shadow, passing 'cross the floor.
Keep thinking that the brightness will keep you safe.
A creaking floorboard, a single footstep from above,
Chills the air around your soul.
Keep pretending that the mice are playing tricks,
That it will be alright, with light.
But as the moon crosses a window,
A scratching at the glass, single tap at the door,
Hairs your neck tells a different story,
To the one your mind needs to believe.

©Nick Strong 2014
691 · Nov 2013
I Found My Past
Nick Strong Nov 2013
I found my past,
Behind an old cardboard box,
Covered with webs,
And centuries of dust.
A rusty key for a door,
That’s long since forgotten.
A fading photograph of a,
Distant relative lost after a war.
A yellowing newspaper,
Revealing a family torn in two.
A crumpled love letter,
Stained by tears and coffee,
It spoke to me of things.
That root me to floor.

©  Nick Strong 2014
684 · Sep 2014
Drops Falling
Nick Strong Sep 2014
Drops fall from the grey,
Singly spattering leaves
Crashing through foliage
To bounce upon the earth
landing in cracks, amongst the roots
Your tears fall from eyes
To touch to the cheek,
A shimmering memory
Of a twice grey day
Written in a quick five minutes....
682 · Jan 2014
Path
Nick Strong Jan 2014
Looking behind,
The wet footprints,
Drying as you gaze…
The path recedes before your eyes.
No sign of where you might have been.
Looking ahead, no footprints to follow,
A pathway to create.
Invisibly,
Stretching before you….

©  Nick Strong 2014
674 · Nov 2013
Spring In the Forest
Nick Strong Nov 2013
Woken from deep slumber,

Quiet rustlings underneath,

Start anew.


    ©  Nick Strong 2014
659 · Nov 2013
The Vampire
Nick Strong Nov 2013
When the smoke and the mirror clears,
The reflection left,
Is not what's expected.
I haven't come here at all,
There's no shadow staring back at me.

©  Nick Strong 2014
644 · Oct 2013
Robin
Nick Strong Oct 2013
This robin,
Sitting On,
That branch.
Singing songs,
For you.
Tis true.

    ©  Nick Strong 2014
641 · Apr 2014
Honey (10 w)
Nick Strong Apr 2014
Honey,
You melt me,
With piercing eyes,
And ice smile.

© Nick Strong 2014
10 word poem
641 · Oct 2013
May ...
Nick Strong Oct 2013
May the sun, shine on your shoulders.
May your breeze continue to blow.
May storms always sidestep you.
May the shadows leave you in peace,
And light scatter the darkness.
May, struggles be surmountable.
May, each corner, you turn,
Bring happiness within reach.

May you live in peace with your fellow man
May friendship always sit beside you,
May integrity keep you safe,
May it shield you from all harm
Amore propre be your watch word.
May you know a calmness within.
May the wind always blow you,
Safely towards my door.

    ©  Nick Strong 2014
628 · Apr 2014
How to make Jelly
Nick Strong Apr 2014
Take the packet firmly in the hand,
Peer at instructions, move closer
White on red, red on white,
A blur….. (Oh Parklife!)
Eyes peer harder….. Memory grasps
A distant image of mother making jelly
Move packet further away, twist in the light,
Little clues appear from the smudge
One hundred millimetres or millilitres, cubes, cut, stir
Or was it cubes, cut, stare….
**** these eyes,
Yesterday they worked fine,
When did I wake up so old?

© Nick Strong 2014
Oh to be old suddenly ... it creeps up
624 · Jan 2014
On Days Like These
Nick Strong Jan 2014
On days like these,
I look to the heavens,
Smile and wink.
Then think,
Of lessons learnt.
Of directions shown.
Of amazing things sown,
Within my soul.

©  Nick Strong 2014
623 · Nov 2013
War and Conflict
Nick Strong Nov 2013
Machine guns rattle.
Words being spat with hate.
No time for each other.
Only vitriol, then damnation.
There's no worry,
When it’s only children,
Whole families, destroyed.
War and conflict.

    ©  Nick Strong 2014
620 · Jan 2014
The President's Men
Nick Strong Jan 2014
The president ordered! All the men said Yes!
Come defend our walls, ‘gainst the onslaught,
To keep the peace, safeguard our freedom,
Maintain the rights of Men of the West.
The President said Yes! All the men ordered in line!
Defend our walls, ‘gainst undeniable credible threats,
Who questions our integrity, and the honour of the free?
Protect our walls, build them brick by brick higher.
The President ordered! All the men strengthened those walls.
Keep them from coming, taking from our own.
Fight with fierce force, engage without fear,
Stop them at the borders, make them feel unwelcome.
The President ordered! All the men saluted!
Then marched off, for an undeniable confrontation.
A war that would change men’s hearts, crumble their souls.

©  Nick Strong 2014
608 · Nov 2013
Compared to You.....
Nick Strong Nov 2013
Compared to you, I am no one.
Compared to you I am but a fool.
Compared to you I am undone.
I am without,
I am lost,
I am undone!

    ©  Nick Strong 2014
606 · Nov 2013
........
Nick Strong Nov 2013
Why I love you?
Is a thought,
I have in my mind,
From the time sun rises
To the appearance of the moon.
And I don't know why,
But then you ask about
Ponchos.
And I smile, then giggle
And, I know why
It is just meant to be.

©  Nick Strong 2014
606 · Jan 2015
Poetry of Motion
Nick Strong Jan 2015
There’s poetry of motion
In this world that we call ours,
From the ticking of the time piece
To the beating heart caged within our bones

There’s poetry of motion
In this world that we call ours,
From the orbit of the moon,
Too the pulling of the tides

There’s poetry of motion
In this world we call ours.
From the sun beat….ing out the day
To the turning of the seasons.

There’s poetry of motion
Upon this earth we think we own
From the cycle of birth, life, death,
With sowing of a seed, the harvesting of the grain

There’s this thing we think of as poetry of motion
I do not seek to understand it
Just to roll in time to my own destiny
Along this thing we call poetry of motion

Yet sometimes I do wonder if we understand
This poetry of motion, that we think we own
When we stare beyond this the universe
And see another type of motion
A wholly different point of time
With the creation, life and death
Of a billion other stars.

(Sun)
Ongoing piece.
604 · Oct 2013
Thank you
Nick Strong Oct 2013
Thank you,
Just, Thank
You,
For all the moments,
spent  together.
Thank You for
letting your path
wander alongside mine
Just thank
You x

    ©  Nick Strong 2014
587 · Nov 2013
Failure to Stop
Nick Strong Nov 2013
Failure to stop...may cause injury....
But then again it may not
The choice, to choose is yours.
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