Today I found our tree
in a field by the road
I hadn’t been this way before
just got diverted cos it snowed

Its trunk is old and twisted
with its branches stretched out wide
and as snow falls all around it
neath its canopy I hide

I never pictured it in winter
always in summer, maybe fall
you and I would sit beneath
answering the poets call

We’d write about each other
sharing emotions from our past
a play performed by strangers
an imaginary cast

But as this winter storm embraces
a foot of snow falls maybe two
the only that’s missing here
my dearest love is you.

26 letters, some I never use
is all i have to demonstrate
my melancholy news
combined in different orders
changing pace and changing tone
I try to tell the sadness
of being here alone
I build in different tempo's
no repetition or refrain
outside the fact that once again
my tears fall like rain
26 letters, some I never use
will go back into their box
until I get just one from you

Full belly, warm day.
Perfect mix for siesta.
I'll just close my eyes...

I have this magnificent puzzle hanging on my wall that I made years ago.

I can’t remember exactly but I think it’s 797 pieces

Yes that’s right

797

Because there’s pieces missing.

All sky pieces, one sky piece toward the top and over to the left and two over to the right.

They stick out like sore thumbs and everyone comments on them. Like I hadn’t seen it before.

“Do you know you’re missing a few pieces of your puzzle there?” they ask.

Some even look at the floor to see if somehow they had miracoulsly wormed their way out from between the glass and card backing and fell to the ground. Because obviously it must have happened since last time I vacuumed.

So I just shrug and tell them that I know. And I tell them that they’ve always been missing, even when I framed it, they weren’t there.

This at least stops them looking at the floor.

Quite often they’ll tell me that I should have taken it back and got my money back or got a different puzzle. One with 800 pieces instead of 797.

But I tell them no. I like my 797 piece puzzle.

I like it because it reminds me of life.

Just because life is missing a piece or two you don’t put it back in the box and return it for a refund or a different one or throw it away.

Just because you put a lot of work into life and find out that there’s pieces missing you don’t just scrap it.

You should adapt to life with missing pieces.

You should be making the best of it and be proud of its uniqueness.

It especially reminds me of my life

My life is incomplete, my life is missing a few things, but the views pretty good.

And every now and then you’ll catch me looking around for those missing pieces, it’s a habit I guess.

Looking for the forest
from deep within the trees
lost within frustration
again upon my knees

Clouds once more have gathered
silver linings left behind
pain and pleasure hand in hand
forever intertwined

Torn between the future
and the struggles of the past
in a battle never ending
happiness can never last

Days are never longer,
                                        nor more empty,
                                                          ­            than when you're not in them.
                                                                                                                              .
                                                                                                                                .
                                                                                                                                .

Is it wrong to give up hope
at this stage of my life
that I'll finding enduring happiness
instead of naught but strife

The only things I have to go on
are the moments in my past
that at once were pure heaven
but never seem to last

The aftermath is always greater
than the sum of treasures lost
thats why my books will never balance
and why I'm left to count the cost

So if I accept a future
in which my life I'll never share
The only dream I ever had
will wither without air

But no more will I feel this pain
this agonizing loss
the books will one day balance out
no more credits, no more cost

Like sentinels of days gone by
They're silhouettes against the sky
A headstone for those still below
A monument we proudly show

Of times when our tin was the very best
when quality counted not paying less
When the work was hard and the day was long
And the mines were filled by the miners song

Their hymns tell tales of life in the deeps
where darkness surrounds and dampness creeps
where disaster can be just a minute away
and you thanked the lord for every day

For generations all our menfolk
proudly joined the line
never once imagining
that we'd outlast the mine

I can't believe you looked me in the eyes,
while you ****** me in with promises and lies.
Told me stories, never true,
about the things that made you you.
And all the while you crafted your disguise.

Just what was it made me **** an easy mark?
Was it personal for you or just a lark?
You played it very cool,
while making me the perfect fool.
You're a ***** who's bite is way worse than her bark.

But you know what, now its over I ain't sad
You'll see revenge it tastes so sweet I'm almost glad
See I've been driven by a cause
and thats to see that you get yours
And if you don't like the taste, too ******' bad!

Like autumn leaves upon the river
and icebergs in the spring
I'm a captive of the current
driven by anothers whim

It seems I am adrift again
once more carried by the wind
with no anchor chains to hold me
nor ropes to bind me in

Will there ever be stability
within this soul of mine
will I ever find the one
that becomes the tie that binds

There is a faded headstone
I walk past every day
I've never stopped to read it
least not until today

The names are hard to make out
and the numbers just a blur
There's not very much to tell you
just who these people were

It seem they were a couple
Mary-Beth and John
She passed away aged 38
He died at 41

I imagine childhood sweethearts
who didn't live that long
A short but long lived love affair
that in death still lingers on

What happens to me when I die?
in perpetual darkness do I lie?

Or do I get to try once more,
equipped with lessons learned before?

with hopes that this time I will be,
a better man for all to see.

A kinder man with bigger heart,
than went before this second start.

More patient that I was in before,
no longer tired, no longer sore.

With slate wiped clean reborn anew,
no memories of me or you.

If that is all that dying holds,
I will not fear this coming cold.

Nor chills that wake me in the night,
as 'gainst this ill I lose my fight.

Once born again I long to see,
if I can be a better me.

we sent our soldiers off to war
trained to fight and fire a gun
if only we could train them
to deal with what they've done

no matter what the cause
or the reason for the fight
they are left alone to learn
how to make it through the night

for war is such a brutal game
that no one ever wins
and each and every player
gets haunted by their sins

and when the final battle ends
and one side says its won
for many who survive the fight
the nightmares just begun

Wandering the streets alone
braced against the colds
a dusty worn out overcoat
mismatched shoes with matching holes

Sunken eyes and sagging cheeks
skin all weathered, failing sight
He meanders through the cobbled streets
seeking warmth to last the night

His story all too common
one more forgotten son
who fell right through the cracks
once his duty had been done

The nightmares that he couldn’t shake
that wouldn’t let him sleep
mix with memories of the friends he lost
call forth tears he cannot weep

The proud young man once strong and brave
is now a shadow in his past
just while awake his demons hide
but his peace will never last

This is the hardest letter
I've ever had to write
knowing as I sit here
you may not make it through the night

I love you oh so very much
and know you are in pain
all I want and nothing more
is to see you well again

But what I want
has made me blind
the truth I cannot hide
your time with us will soon be up
as god takes you to his side

So here I sit and write my thoughts
in a letter you'll never read
because writing is what i do best
after you planted the seed

I remember as a little boy
we would talk into the night
I would make up poems and stories
that you encouraged me to write

So it seems only fitting
as I sit here well past two
that I should write this letter
and give my thanks to you

I love you
and I will miss you...

I lay my heart to rest one day,
so tattered and so bruised.
For although he had served me well,
he was not enough you.

He lay there for so long a time,
neglected and unused.
Without a love to nurture him,
a wall around him grew.

Alone he sits now in the dark,
exiled without crowns.
Yearning for a worthy queen,
‘fore he in sorrow drowns.

He clings to hope through day and night,
not knowing what to do.
Wondering if his fair queen,
could possibly be you?

Hand in hand we walk the beach,
as the sun sets on the sea.
Who would have dreamed,
those years ago that this is where we'd be.

I knew your face and knew you smile,
'fore I ever heard your voice.
But once we knew without a doubt,
then you could make your choice.

From passing friends we quickly grew,
to become each others air.
Without whom we would suffocate,
without which we would despair.

And then one day I heard your voice,
calling down the phone.
Telling me you'd made your choice,
that we were free to be alone.

My heart leapt and inside I wept,
not from sadness but from joy.
For now we could at last be one,
The girl could meet the boy.

Everything we talked about,
finally came true.
Its like we'd been this way before,
like we already knew.

Now hand in hand we walk the beach,
as the sun sets on the sea.
In all my years there's never been,
a place I'd rather be.

I struggle to make sense of it
but the only reason I can see
is that I was there to give you strength
that helped you to set you free

You left a life of comfort
but with no spirit and no soul
for a life with many challenges
perhaps to make you whole

But first one thing then another
made our future hard to see
and after one too many battles
you walked away from me

So tell me whats the lesson here?
What am I learn from this?
That I'm destined to come second?
That I'll never top the list?

Because trust me I know heartbreak,
I've learned that one many times.
But I thought this time was different,
thought I'd read between the lines.

Now all I feel is guilty,
that our crossing paths just made yours worse,
to me you were a blessing.
Was I to you a curse?

There is no love that hurts so much,
As one that goes unknown,
Despite bereft of nurturing,
Immensely it has grown.

There is no love as hurts so much,
As one that's unreturned,
A passion so intense, confined,
It's owner simply burned.

And no matter how we feel
The world will keep on turning
Some will fill their lives with love
While others fill with yearning

We can choose to live uncertain lives
too scared to take a chance
Or be bold and find our happiness
the music to our dance

No matter how safe we play the game
at some point we all get burned
But the only time it’s a mistake
is when the lesson goes unlearned

So some will end up broken
shattered, cast aside
But the ending you will face
is one thing you alone decide

Love and lust are fickle things
oft bought and sold for diamond rings
Sometimes confused one for each other
although not twins they could be brothers

I've tasted both and have to say
there has to be a better way
Connections made both near and far
could lead me to anam cara

A stronger bond that knows no end
anam cara is my soul friend
One who loves the essence of me
who opens my eyes that I might see

Who challenges me to look at myself
to read every book that sits on my shelf
My anam cara, my souls friend
awaits for me, round lifes next bend.

I cannot make you love me
though there's nothing I want more
And I'm scared my hearts gonna end up
lying bleeding on the floor

You see there's much I have to say
so much I want for you to know
but to lay my very soul out...
is that somewhere I want to go?

And perhaps that fear of exposure
should be sign enough itself
that we're not on the same page
or even sharing the same shelf

So tell me now, what should I do
should I speak up or hold my tongue
is it better to have lost in love
than never been undone

A ****? Healthy greens?
Tasty drink with Burdock root?
The Dandelion

I want to start a new life
is that too much to ask?
One that takes me far away
from mistakes of the past

I want to start a new life
somewhere far away from here
A place where I'll sleep soundly
not lay awake in fear

I want to start a new life
can't be that hard to do
Perhaps we should run away
together me and you

Do you want to start a new life
maybe one with me
Where we're free to be together
and together we'll be free

On the couch beneath a blanket
is how I'll spend this day
Wrapped up in distant memories
keeping grief and guilt at bay

The blanket's from the picnic,
the one we never had.
And the memories we never made,
'fore time ran out and this went bad.

But its how I spend my weekends,
draped in dreams of yesteryears.
Finding comfort in what-might-have-beens,
helps hold back all the tears.

One day I will get over this
come to terms with what I've lost
balance grief with life ahead
find acceptance of the cost

And when I'm ready I'll start over
with the lesson widows get taught
to seize each day in every way
because life really is too short.

Another time, another place
perhaps then it would make sense
but for now its just too painful
watching you sit upon the fence
The timing was not ours to choose
for surely if it were
You wouldn't have to make a choice
nor I 'tween you and her
But choose I did and you I did
I give to you my all
but there you sit upon the fence
unsure which side to fall
And so I ask you one last time
who your choice is please just say
put us both out of our misery
and let the wounded walk away
Another time, another place
perhaps then it would make sense
perhaps then our paths would never cross
and we would keep our innocence

I know at times there seems no point
No sense in going on
You think you have no more to give
that you'd be better gone

But look back not so long ago
to the last time that you smiled
Do you really think that that alone
does not make life worthwhile?

And what about three weeks ago
when Sarah made us laugh
so hard we almost peed ourselves
would you rather have missed that?

Now think of those asleep upstairs
all safely tucked in bed
How happy do you think they'd be
to find you here, dead?

I know sometimes life can seem hard
sometimes with no way out
but you have the love of friends like me
of that there is no doubt

So put away the pills my friend,
climb down from off that ledge
Dont make the choice to leave today
Let me lead you from the edge

In years to come you will look back
perhaps upon this night
and think kindly of your closest friend
who drew you back toward the light

In ignorance and apathy
we blindly stumble on
hopelessly distracted
from everything thats wrong

We're taught by corporations
who market us from birth
and what used to mean "expensive"
now really does "cost us the earth"

Our lives are pure consumption
fueled by TV's bad advice
that tells us we need this and that
when using neither would suffice

As citizens of planet earth
its time to end their greed
stop buying what they want us to
and stick with what we need

A poem should be read aloud
whether to one’s self or to a crowd

It’s meaning lies in being heard
and not the shape of every word

Lest it become calligraphy
hung on the wall for all to see

But poems seen do seldom touch
when compared to one read out as such

For intonation, pace and rhyme
are all heard within the poets mind

As pen commits the words to page
the actors banished from the stage

To reappear when words meet sound
and raise the poem from the ground

To sail on high with majesty
extolling sorrow, mirth or glee

Bring forth emotions penned in ink
and take the reader to the brink

To place you there midst poems tale
for to spectate means poets fail

So stand up son and stand up proud
whilst you read these lines out loud

Feel the smile upon your face
or seen on others your voice did grace

For had you kept this to yourself
might just as well have stayed on the shelf

But bringing voice to wiser words
allows its message to be heard

A message know by self or crowd
that poems should be read aloud

Some of this is real
and some of it is not
some will be remembered
and some will be forgot

All of this has come from me
these are words I've written down
but I do not always wear its cape
nor bleed beneath its crown

So take this down from time to time
leave it not upon the shelf
and read its contents knowing
the authors really in good health.

As poets our lives must seem too short,
and filled with so much pain.
We seldom receive recognition in time,
no sunshine, to brighten our rain.

But as poets we live more than most,
the good times and the bad,
and we get to share our adventures with you,
dear reader, both happy and sad.

But what catches your eye, and comforts your soul,
are the tragedies we relay.
Because there is always some comfort in finding,
you're not the first, to come this way.

And so as poets, we continue to write
and attempt to connect with our words,
to the people who know, why we do what we do,
and not those who think its for the birds.

If Monday were a poem
it would be short and terse
Disorganised and cluttered
not a friendly little verse

If Tuesday were a poem
much better it would fare
Over the words that went within
I'd be inclined to care

If Wednesday were a poem
it would be full of hope
the week is halfway over and
we climb back down the rope

If Thursday were a poem
looking forward it would be
dreaming of the weekend
and the joys that it will see

If Friday were a poem
t'would be happy, bright and gay
for work is finally over
and now its time to play

If Saturday was poetry
as frequently it is
Then I would sit alone and write
A poem such as this

But Sundays where this poem
comes to a natural end
For tomorrow will be Monday
and it will start again.

Blue skies, dark clouds
rain is on the way

Warm rain, warm breeze
lets hope it doesn't stay

Big clouds, black clouds
thunders gonna crash

Bright light, pure white
Lightning starts to flash

Storm breaks, water snakes
in rivers down the lane

Clouds break, breath take
blue skies back again

Caught somewhere in the middle
between the darkness and the light
Her life lived in the shadows
seeking solace in the night

Innocence and tragedy
too often hand in hand
a purity of spirit
too good to grace this land

Escaping from her demons
and echoes of the past
ascending toward heaven
to redemption, peace at last.

He placed a single rose upon the headstone
and then turned and walked away
his heart as broken and as heavy
as ever twas upon this day

For twenty years he's made this trip
though back then he was sixty five
the forty years they shared he said
were the only years he felt alive

A small town boy and a city girl
he figured her quite the catch
undaunted by her city ways
they made the perfect match

Their love was like a fairytale
without the happy ever after
sure bad times came by now and then
but life was filled with laughter

But even to this day he says
forty years was not enough
his voice strengthens when he speaks of her
sounding not so old and gruff

He thinks about her every day
even after all these years
but each year this the only time
he allows himself some tears

He says he opens up the bottle
lets a few spill off the top
but never sheds so many
lest he find he cannot stop

Before he takes his glasses off
turns off the bedside light
he blows a kiss right to her picture
and bids his love good night

He knows in time he'll see her
and kiss her once again
its what he says has kept him going
kept him strong through all this pain

Although he doesn't know it yet
thats the last rose he will place
in sleep tonight he'll join her
once more he'll see her face

It seems quite fitting don't you think
that they should meet again today
the anniversary of their wedding
and a love that never went away

If you have a problem, state it.
If you've a question, please just ask
Don't talk to me in riddles.
Why make everything a task?

You assume too much, I'm thinking.
And these assumptions get your goat
So if thats the case, please humor me
here's an idea I'd like to float.

If you have a question, ask it.
If you've a problem, tell the class
Because this attitude I'm getting
Is a royal pain in the ***.

Autumns final leaf
Still clings to a long bared branch
Winters serenade

I walked along the beach one day
and found a rusty lamp
I picked it up and rubbed it off
to wipe away the damp

And suddenly this little man
fell out upon the floor
looked up and started cursing me
"what the hell d'you do that for?!"

So I apologised and picked him up
'fore he got eaten by a fish
and in return said to me
for that you've earned a wish

I wished something that's not for me
but for a freind who's lucks been poor
and so impressed was the little man
he said for that you can have one more

So I wished again for someone else
who's lot is worse than mine
and again the little fellow
repeated his last line

But this time round my wish was such
that it would also do me good
A little more self serving
and a bit less Robin Hood

But again he told me I'd get one more
and I felt a bit confused
Is there going to come a time
when my turns have all be used

He said to me he didn't know
but things could be much worse
One fella left him on the ground
for that he got a curse.

His curse was to live in a lantern
and float from shore to shore
until he finally found someone
Who was rich but also poor

Then he asked me for twenty bucks
I told him ten was all I had
but he was welcome to it anyway
if it helped I would be glad

So he took my ten and hailed a cab
that just happened to be driving past
with a squeal of tires and a puff of smoke
they both took off really fast

I tried to dismiss it from my mind
as a weird daydream at best
But then when I got home
at my door, was a little wooden chest

The note on the box said well done you
you truly are mankinds friend
This token of our appreciation
means you'll never be poor again

I've still got the chest here somewhere
and the level seems never to drop
but I have pretty much all I need
so there's gold right up to the top.

It's time to put the baggage down,
I've carried all these years.
The broken dreams and promises,
that caused so many tears.

For years now I blamed myself,
like I somehow was the cause,
and you let me go thinking that,
without so much as a pause.

And like a dozen bags of groceries,
I carried it around,
without ever even thinking,
I could just put them on the ground.

The handles cut into my fingers,
sometimes a bag would split,
and the contents would come spilling out,
and send me to that pit.

The one where daylight does not reach,
the one filled with despair,
to wallow in my misery,
too tired to even care.

But a wise man told me yesterday,
that baggage is just that.
Something you can put down,
and leave upon the mat.

It does no good to carry on,
with burdens and self blame.
Those with destinys to care for you,
will do so just the same.

So check your baggage at the door.
Leave your pack upon the ground,
and feel free to leave it here,
amongst heartaches lost and found.

What a gift you are to me.
My sweet and steaming cup of tea.
It is with you I start each day.
There really is no better way.

Give us all your cash
For a fee we'll give some back
Or maybe we wont
We'll use it as we see fit
If we get it wrong, you lose.

The clearest blue sky
Not perfect, but pretty close
Scarred with wisps of cloud
Yachts languish in the doldrums
As time itself takes time out

Riddles and rhymes
are all very fine
but sometimes they're a pain in the ***

They get in the way
of what you're trying to say
Like the fog inside of the glass

So if you've something to say just spill it
to my face don't sneak up from behind
Cos I'm not very smart in affairs of the heart
I'm not just short sighted I'm blind

Is my life all that I deserve
or are things about to change
destined to live below the curve
aiming for that which is out of range

Or is everything not as it seems
not destined here to stay
to have come true my childhood dreams
to finally get my way

It all boils down to my beliefs
and if I believe in me
then everything I know inside
will one day come to be

And so it is with all of us
we can always make that change
and move our lives above the curve
where nothings out of range.

Be strong for I am with you,
in everything you do.
When exhaustion you doth overtake,
I'm here to pull you through.

When insecurity abounds,
and you are filled with doubt.
Be strong for I am with you,
together we will out.

And when hard choices you must face,
not alone you make your stand.
For I am right beside you,
and your hand is in my hand

And late at night whilst in your bed,
you feel so safe from harm.
It is 'cause I am with you,
and you lay within my arms

go ahead and do worst
cos there’s nothing left to hurt
there’s no more tears left inside for me to cry

you made your mind up on your own
without picking up the phone
to see if what you’d heard was all a lie

I guess finally we see
just how much you think of me
actually correct that, should be little

you heard what you needed to
and now there’s nothing left to do
but I guess to split it all right down the middle

you know, forget it, have it all
I hope you really have a ball
and all this **** replaces what you lost

say thank you to  your pride
cos you picked the losing side
maybe one day you will see just what it cost

I see you in the spaces between words
in the things that go unsaid and go unheard
Your presence seeps into the things I cannot say
for to speak of them would give the game away
I work so hard just to keep things to myself
lest my soul become another book upon the shelf
But how can I keep this secret never shared
until I know how much or if you even cared
Do you ever think you see between the lines
the words you long to hear but cannot find.