It is but new words
for resonant songs:
in languages tuned
from old notes.
Imaginations are
rearranged to yield
greater and deeper
human insights,
framed in a
variety of forms.
Truth to  Sincerity
is all.

Nothing in literature
can be compared
to poetry, other
than Beauty.
For, in a word,
Poetry is Perfection.

Tobias.

A hedgehog, while traversing a road
gave a lift to a tentative toad.
As the piggy-back was prickly
they traversed it quite quickly.
and made it safely over the road.

TOBIAS.

Maybe a photo of her favourite corgis
Or, a foil-wrapped dog biscuit?
Surely, a collapsible crown.
A fold-up tiara  would be
more practical -  I guess.
Her Majesty loves horses, so a
carrot or two is de rigueur.
Spare ******  would not go amiss.
Emergency use false teeth? Possibly.
As much as one can surmise,
pearls would not surprise.
Predictably, a ready made speech
on neatly folded vellum  beginning
with the words: "My husband and I."

If I could be so bold – Ma'am -
I suggest a personal alarm.
A spare pair of gloves too;
all those sweaty handshakes.
But so as not to make you huffy,
in case The Poet Laureate may know
What's in The Royal Handbag?
I’m going to ask Carol Ann Duffy.

My wishes are: that you will
find Comfort in trying times.
Smiles when Sadness intrudes.
Rainbows to disperse dark clouds.
Laughter to kiss your lips.
Sunsets to warm your heart.
Hugs when spirits are low.
Friendship to brighten your being.
A Muse to Inspire you.
Faith in which to believe
in Poetry's possibilities.
Courage to know yourselves.
Confidence when in doubt.
Good Health and the Patience
to accept what is - that you
can go on to live a long
and fulfilling happy life .

Oh!! I almost forgot
more Inspiration - less
Perspiration in your writing
and creativity.

You are the one and only
who’s giving me so much.
A generous heart, a home
true love, a feathery touch.

You are baring your soul.
Even gifting me your sleep
more precious than gems.
Holding me when I weep.

I am whispering secrets
like the wind in your ear.
I embrace you with love
hold you tenderly, near.

You are truth to power
healing love leaving traces
on heartbeats thrilling my soul
every wakening hour.

Poems fill lonely places
as you kiss me gently awake.
Your soft hands on my skin
love to give and love to take.

I see a world in your eyes
every laugh like a wave
of joy wrapped around me,
I feel sheltered and safe.

I lived,
to write
my story of
survival for people
who are suffering victims.

"I am content to follow to its source
Every event in action or in thought;
Measure the lot; forgive myself the lot!
When such as I cast out remorse
So great a sweetness flows into the breast
We must laugh and we must sing,
We are blest by everything,
Everything we look upon is blest."

A Dialogue of Self And Soul - W B Yeats

“Truly,an abstract masterpiece,
you have just finished Picasso!”

“No, my friend, it’s a disaster:
everything in it is wrong….

…..so bad, I’m throwing
it away. I can’t stand it.”

“Don’t do that Pablo,
that face could  be
improved: just paint over it?”

“Hmm. Amigo, I would
not know where to start…”

“Start at the nose Pablo,
if I were you…”

The artist studies the canvas:
"the nose? The nose? "


“Qué lástima! I would
if I could find it.”


TOBIAS

Tender gardener of my life – Thee:
You tore out every clawing ****
of rooted thoughts that troubled me,
cast all aside, of them I had no need.

You nurture fresh and scented herbs
bouquet garni, green and sweet,
shelter those that wind disturbs,
tending all in clogs or naked feet.

With love, You water seeds you set,
symbols of loved ones  far and near,
nurtured close -  so to beget,
new life - remembrance ever dear.

Butterflies betimes alight,
birds drop in from flight
to water dip. Silk webs are spun.
Drink Thee deep the nectar of the sun.

Bask now inspired among this
garden’s  joy  in  rainbow’s sight,
revel long in all its blossom’s bliss.
But, veil them, lest they pale by night.

Relax, rest and spend more time,
‘neath shade of this thy balcony.
Watch,  where  nasturniums climb,
'neath its cooling, precious canopy.

I will  gift mystic seeds for thee to grow,
watch thee plant them lovingly in a row,
these our hopes: talismans of thine to me,
twinned with promises of mine, pledged unto thee.

Together: we will tend them,
watch and help them grow.

TOBIAS

Two souls sundered
while coming to life,
forming two bodies.

Still souls:
Twin Flames.
forced apart,
yet destined
to meet again.

Longing always:
dual tormented  
by separation.  
Getting weaker
in drifting distance.

Each passing second,
incomplete without
The Other.
Like a missing
piece of a puzzle
though still alive.

We waited.
We met.
We merged
into One.
United
Forever.

Oh! Happy Land
of quiet words,
of transferred
thoughts,
of melting
spirits and
never ending
Beauty:
let's linger there
in niches of
Silence.


OSIRIS

A Coat
By William Butler Yeats

I made my song a coat
Covered with embroideries
Out of old mythologies
From heel to throat;
But the fools caught it,
Wore it in the world’s eyes
As though they’d wrought it.
Song, let them take it
For there’s more enterprise
In walking naked.


TOBIAS

Madness as privatised
business - is booming.
Therapist's careers
are blooming.
Social media
bottom feeds
on mental angst.

Suffering suffuses
Agony Chat Rooms.
Sorrow streams into
the public domain.
Distress has become
valued currency.

Bruises  tattooed
over have become
an ironic needling
A kind of beauty
masking grief.
Depression is
now commercial.
Emotions as a canvas
have become  street Art.

Heartbreak is tuned to lyrics
of gut-wrenching songs.
Pain is distilled in poetry.
Never was Madness so marketable.

Tobias

You were never in
a foreign land to me,
but more like home:
a place where I am
meant to be.

I found that sacred path
the one that we were meant to
walk together forever - My Love.
Right up to your open door…
all distances diminished.

Now each day passes
where yesterday is
forever  gone while
tomorrow we will let
take care of itself.

For the only thing
that really matters
is this moment:
here so quickly
gone as quickly.

Still in a very
real and good
sense this is the
the one sure
place to live.

TOBIAS

Spending time alone  
keeping the moments
on your own…
…were once a notion
you thought was for sure.
only felling free
with a  sweet free will.
Never having to
make comparisons.

I left terra firma with
no flight plan,
never thinking
who to meet
never caring they
may have someone
to lovingly greet
on their return.

What you knew was:
"I am happy being Me,
not being with you,
dating, making merry, free."

For years, I have
grown,  matured.
So has my age,
my hair, my faith
and my goals.
I still didn't mind,
still didn't care.
I wasn't scared,
nor was I afraid
as I flew in hope
towards you.

But faith was fair:
I found its shade
though I did fear
Your feelings fade.
Yet you were there
and made your way.
You lit the  flares,
along the runway.

I was just honestly
unaware and didn't
fear a crash at all.
But like leaves that fall,
never knowing where to go,
which way to settle on,

Its best that nobody knows.
What matters is:
You were there
where I landed.

TOBIAS

There was no Goodbye
from you to me,
nor closing of eyes,  
for they had never
opened for a first time.

Fatal foetal sleep took you
into an eternal dream
a state far more sublime.

No thanks for me
giving you a home,
providing food,
warmth and water,
sharing what I owned.

No matter:
I carried you
walked with you
talked to you
imagined a wee
fair hairy head.

You lived in me,
stayed with me.
I will remember
always the nice
things we did
together while
you lived.

You had to go
You won't return
But You left me
with a gift…
...The  Memories

And even though
it's not a lot
I'd like to
let you know
what sweet joy -
however brief -
it was having  
You inside awhile.

I hope I was a good friend.

TOBIAS

I  sense it on this sunny morn’ in May
I knew that I could not wait another day
There is something I must tell you
A voice is calling to me….

“Until we find the bridge across forever
Until this grand illusion brings us home,
You and I will always be together
From this day on, you'll never walk alone".

….You are a part of me, I'm a part of you:
Wherever we may travel
Whatever we may go through
Whatever time and space may take away,
It cannot change the way I feel today.

So hold me close - say you feel it too:
You are part of me and I am part of you.

TOBIAS

Tell me, who else can...
     Bring me sunshine on a cloudy day
     and in dormant Winter -  flowers...
     Hug me safe and warm when I'm not near
     Play me songs to make me dream for hours?

Tell me, who else can...
     Lend a shoulder when I’m feeling blue
     Let me rely on down the years
     Hold me in her life so safe and true
     Kiss away the sadness of my tears
    
Tell me, who else can...
     Listen to your words when you put me in my place
     Reveal to me the truths of her dear heart
     Simply be the kind of person I was looking for
     Show me I can be the best good man she’ll ever find.
    
Tell me, Who else can?     Only You.

TOBIAS

In your
Ballad of
Reading Gaol
you wrote
everything
on  pages
of sorrow,
love,
rage,
insights,
compassion.

I truly believe
your poetry
set you free
of the
tormenting
jailers and
your Muse
Erato turned
the keys
that opened
your cage.

TOBIAS.

In your childhood
I saw You formed
as fragrant flowers:
while sun showers
fell on your growth
to natural beauty.

Gently as You bloomed,
I placed daisy-light
kisses of sweet love
on your chaste petals.
On your first birthday
an acorn - I planted.

Now in a mythical
Garden of Memories
I carve into the mature
towering oak tree bark
clean fresh stanzas
of unforgettable words,
That tell You truly:
Never Doubt
You Are Loved.

I lift my proud hands
as if to reach the sky
and bring down
showers of stars
for they ever shine
so bright, so clear
Just like You do.

TOBIAS

Memories are golden
that is really true:
those I never sought,
I only wanted you.

For years I cared for you,
the countless times I cried.
If love alone could cure you
you never would have died.

In life I loved you dearly,
In death I love you still.
In my heart - a space you fill
no other pet can - nor ever will.

If tears could trace a roadway
and heartache guide my feet,
I’d ***** the steps to feline heaven
and  bring you down to earth again.

Now a chain is broken,
nothing seems the same.
But all in Fate’s  good time
the chain will link us once again.

TOBIAS

Your smile gives the warmth of sunshine:
I see In thine eyes  moonlight’s glow.
Serenity surrounds your graceful ways
here, and wherever you come or go.

The gentle breeze of Springtime
whispers thy name into the air,
while  colours of the seasons
shine reflected in thine hair.

You: the woman I shape with words:
with thee as the subject matter
no amount of poetry nor prose
could ever suffice in language.

The past is thy tutor. The present
pure nature of thine. The future is
faith in our troth. Eternal Woman.
Thou.

TOBIAS

How easy it is for me to say: -
Have the best of days -:
to wish you a day full
of goodness is far
from nearly enough.

I want your every day
to be filled with happiness.
I want you to feel how
much I love you every minute
of every new day - for always.

I want to always be there for you.
to help you be strong, yet kind.
You teach me by example,
helping me to become
the kinder  person I aspire to be.

You are a perfect example of a mother:
to your beautiful daughter - to me as well.
Thank you for being the mother you are.
Thank you for being my Strength:
my Way, my Light, my Lover.
I love You.

TOBIAS

War is pointless:
once you truly
accept no life is
less important
than your own.

TOBIAS

Near a green hollow where a ditch runs
it lies off road: grassy fronds toss
shade back towards the sun’s
rays that  fall on cushioning moss.  
Hit by a passing vehicle - I surmise…

A badger, mouth open, jet hair
bathed in blue water cress
seems asleep, white blazed, unaware
of clouds and wind’s caress.
On closer look  - a grim surprise…

Like a stroller taking a rest,
its nostrils uncloyed by scents.
Motionless. Laid out on its chest.
In its right side are two red rents.
Lead-shot peppers the entry wounds.

TOBIAS

Within me is a heart
pleading and true:
a man forced apart
willing to free you.

Remembering our life,
recalling fifty years
as man and wife
eroding in tears..

From this illness
turn from pain:
you to stillness
revived again.

Bring your mind
home - a release
safe once more
in Hearts-ease.

TOBIAS

Definition of Hearts-Ease in
the language of flowers: Peace of mind.

Two souls sundered
while coming to life:
formed as two bodies.
created as Twin Flames.
yet drifted apart,
still destined to meet.

Longing always:
feeling the torment
of separation.  
Getting weaker
in time and distance.
Each passing second
incomplete without
the precious  Other.

Like a missing
piece of a puzzle
finally in place.
We meet
We merge
into One.
At last again
united - Forever

TOBIAS

Holding on to you
so tight - a dream.
Unable to part
with this love,
My joy is endless.

On life’s  path ahead,
all I can see is,
myself  with you.
Let  Winter winds
blow cold...

...come Spring
They’re old
and we are new.

Missing you:
knowing of
your  sensual
accomplishments,

Surely we will
become reunited,
until then
this  love
will grow
truly,
eternally.

TOBIAS

“Attention! For those desiring body
Re-construction.  You can be on the
way to a new You. Now thanks to a
range of  cosmetic techniques,
your true beauty is unlocked”.
Dr. Hiram Shapemgood.

Take my mate’s girl friend - answered the advert:
she’s a cosmetic surgeon’s dream:
Botox rid the wrinkles round her eyes
and Lipo-Suction smoothed her cheeks.

Then the talk was all about
her saggy, thin lips: a  Trout Pout
soon  transformed them into
tasty,  luscious smackers.

She just had to get a Nose Job.
a Chin Lift followed that.
Neck Fat Transfer was a bargain
and banished unwanted floppy bulges.

For the sake of body proportion,
A **** Job next: had them reshaped:
made pert with silicon implants
firmer, fuller, lifted, enhanced.

As for her abdomen – The Tummy Tuck.
Buttocks augment? – The **** Lift,
Hips reshaped. Thighs trimmed.
Knees, calves, and ankles re-contoured.

She loves herself the way she is
and swears it’s all worthwhile.
As for him? She who once was toned, elastic,
he reckons might as well be Barbie Doll plastic.

TOBIAS

It used to frighten me
as a young farm worker
that the bull would break out.

I would take my blanket
and in practice play
the matador’s moves

It was my way
of countering my fears
of a horned charge in the night.

It never came
but being ever ready
I slept always on guard.

TOBIAS

When I arrive at The Pearly Gates,
I will still be troubled by
the one thing in life I never
really understood. I mean
the second Theory of Relativity.
My nightmare is that St. Peter
is not on duty the day I die
and I seek entry.
He will have, I hope, passed
on the usual questions....

...all of which I have sure-fire
prepared answers,
to one of his locum guardians.
Hope it’s not Albert Einstein.

TOBIAS

God
Of Man,
Woman, Soul,
Thank you for creating me.

You
Called me from sleep
to meet this day,
whatever comes or may.

To
You I offer all
my actions: let them
be done as Thou will.

For
Thy greater glory
keep me from sin
and every evil.

May
Thy Grace be always
with me and all those
dear to me .
Amen.

TOBIAS

So, you think you
are turning into a
packet of biscuits?

Yes, Doctor.

What sort of biscuits?

Square ones, Doctor.

Have they got little
holes in them?

That’s the ones.

You must be Crackers!

TOBIAS

Swifts – Swallows:
joy of late Spring
flashed on their wings:
while a world moved
about their arrival
in slow motion.

Wild, restless, they
dip, weave,  dive
above fields, quarry,
over old hedges sun-
streaked, damp -
dappled. Summer-free.

Autumn: earth’s magnet drew
them away on African odyssey.
Our house was their house:
free-loading our welcome
they leave with their brood..
Will they ever return?

Surely, as instinct.
Now they have gone
desolate Winter fills
the hole those birds
have left in the sky.

TOBIAS

M-ore gentle than the sweetest breeze
   Your breathe unites with mine
A-nd for a while I sense that ease
    Two hearts enjoy when lips combine.

R-arer than the richest stones
    Hid in sea swept caves
Y-our eyes in myriad tones
     My searching gaze enslaves.

O-nce the gods of beauty drew
    Your form to their design
R-aised in love you grew
    To loveliness - dare I that work define?

E-rato, Muse of lyric lays
    And verses of amour
I-nspire me now to praise
    In simple poetry, she whom I adore.

L-ike the sun you
  Warm me
L-ike the moon you
  Charm me.
Y-ou are my Valentine.


TOBIAS

You are sunlight’s glow,
softly melting snow.
Awake from Winter ease.
You are the mild breeze
summoned up to tease  
Spring buds in hosts untold.
their shy blossoms to unfold:
reaching out to Summer’s face
forming fruit in weight apace.
Your escorts - butterfly and bee
silenced by Autumn - now flit
to bush and buzz to tree:
seeking out sunbeams befit
for You and Me.

TOBIAS

I have tried to imagine my world without you:
summer swarming bees, distant Cotswold peaks
hidden in snow. The beauty of autumn mornings
along Blaisdon's remembered country roads;
a sunlit river Severn beyond Westbury, the
whirr of pheasants at spring midday and
the calling of owls towards midnight.

Now I know that none of it is the same
without you. But most of all I will never
forget your smile, your eyes your
gentleness and giving, your loyalty
and caring for old friends: *** Carter,
Frank and Elsie Hogg, in particular.
The memories we treasured, the
enjoyments we shared.

The love is forever there
despite time or distance -
clarified through tears.
So today I celebrate that
you existed; thanking
all of life for your life,
expressing my deepest
gratitude that out of
millions of people
and possibilities
our lives were destined
to be intermingled.

As in sorrow,  I mourn your passing,
I know clearly and forever my world
can never be the same: Without You.

TOBIAS

A fit-looking *****
just out of prison,
called at a house
and asked for help.
“I’m surprised at
a man like you
asking for money!”
said the lady
of the house.

“I’ve got to ask
for it ma’am,”
he replied.
“When I took
it last time,
without asking,
I got six
months inside.”

TOBIAS

All night it beat upon the pane
the cold staccato clamour of the rain;
trickling footsteps pattered on the slates
chimneys shuddered soot into the grates.

Banshee winds about the gutters howled
that grinning orb the moon was cowled
by clashing clouds that fused and broke
with every clashing thunder stroke.

Flickering fingers flashing doom
outlined and probed each object in my room;
frail curtains writhed and frantic flapped
tossing over objects - tempest trapped.

Morning came, rain rinsed smelling sweet,
pavements glinted, drains laughed in the street;
trees gesticulated flinging off their jewels
pigeons sipped the sun from sky-paved pools.

TOBIAS

I will arise and forage
not for eggs nor bread
for a bowl of porridge
that gets me out of bed.

Smooth like silk
with added milk
not lumpy mind
‘tis good to find
it thick and grey.
No better way
to start the day.

If the spoon stands upright
no need to  get uptight
it passed  the test
of thin or thick.
Got the Tick.
The Best.

Top Recipe:

Take Slade Prison
Add Ronnie Barker
& Richard Beckinsale
Stir in Fulton Mackay
Mr. Barrowclough to serve.

TOBIAS

You are like the seasons:
blithe nuances  of Spring,
close warmth in Winter.
The cool side of a pillow.

You are like a butterfly,
sun dancing, Summer fresh,
chrysalis freed,  fully flight
formed, passing perfect.

You are like Sentiment’s  
Muse of  tender fancy:
gifted  in  beauty, charm,
wisdom, knowledge, poetry,

Even as much as I like -  
in the Autumn of my days -
your sylphe-like anatomy,
I love your innocent soul.

TOBIAS

A jogging man from Bude
was most incredibly rude
being greatly endowed
but imprudenly proud
he did something silly
he trod on his willie
now he's never about in the ****.

TOBIAS

Has a petrol-head called Clarkson
run out of speedy road to park on?
Because of his late meal,
his producer got a weal.
Now his fans wail: “Oh Dear!
It’s a dead  end for “TOP GEAR.”

Seems the wheels have come off
for this brazen non-PC toff.
Is it the end of the ride
for Chipping Norton’s pride
and no clear  Right of Way
for chums Hammond and May?

No sensible man would scupper,
his own TV slot for a cold supper.
Yet there’s alpha males who dread,
TOP GEAR’S due for a feminist retread.
Go girls! Vroom! Vroom! Time for you instead.

TOBIAS

To live
is to leave  
all behind:
to be free as
a shipwrecked soul
who has lost everything.

TOBIAS

Pastoral peace pervades fields and dells:
on boughs, in hedges, birds rehearse
their euphoric trills - each note tells
of will to mate in tones desiring, terse.
Sun rays filter through April showers
tinting daffodils with yellow  gold
coaxing to bloom perennial flowers.
Easter lambs bleat from sheltered fold,
eager to stray and play by rising streams
winding over meadows to mill ponds
where moorhens nest and idle angler dreams.
Rabbits appear from cover of ferny fronds.
while in the trees countless leafy voices
sigh soothingly as all of Nature rejoices.

TOBIAS

It was the dawn’s first song
sung  upon a dormer sill:
that euphoric  sound
from orange beak
trilling  his sweet
notes all around.

Along
with others
soon joining in,
all thought of work
was forgotten with a smile
Caruso entertained me for a while.

Not the singer of former age
in concert hall on global stage:
to mention Enrico by name and fame.
Only an urban  blackbird among a throng
of birds in carefree chorus of morning song.

TOBIAS

A  limo parks up in a silent street:
moonlight filters into a hotel suite,
naked a form lies under a flimsy sheet.
A door opens and quickly closes,
furtively to the bed a figure moseys.
Slipping in beside the dozer,
snuggled up, ever closer,
He whispers “Julia, I need you,
You waited. I love you.”
Suddenly the tryst is broken
as deep voiced words are spoken:
“Whose Julia?”
“I’m Julian”.

TOBIAS

I never understand
when girls say
they have lost
their virginity.
It's not like
it walked off
somewhere
and can
be found again.
But what's gone
is gone.

I could understand
if they said
that they had
given it away.
Or, that being
misled into bed
it was mislaid.

Now I know
first hand by
charm and chance,
it can be stolen.

TOBIAS

Daffodils?
Wordsworth’s waved and danced:
mine just bend, bow and nod,
in a sight, densely displayed
upon a mossy bank.

No lake there, nor cloud
in the sky,neither am I lonely.
I'm here with a girl called April.
Counting those yellow heads
is easy: sixty, if I’m not mistaken.

How William “...saw ten thousand
at a glance..” from a closet, baffles me.
It seems daffodils make you gay
and sprightly dance - jocund too -
at least they made him so.

Now supine upon my comfy couch
I lie - in breezy mood of parody,
it transports me off to Holland.
where  in Amsterdam counting tulips,
Naughty Weekend April is beside me.

TOBIAS

Your love is like an
atoll in life's ocean,
vast and wide:
a haven, calm shelter
from the wind, the rain, the tide.
It’s bound on the north by Hope,
by Patience on the West,
by tender Counsel on the South
and on the East by Rest.
Over it a beacon flame
reflects Faith, Truth, Prayer.
While  from all the raging
storms of life - your children
find a sanctuary there.

To
truly
Forgive
someone
who harmed
you, is to Forget
where you buried
the avenging hatchet.

TOBIAS

Mine host in a B&B on the coast,
excelled in the making of toast,
But one morning - half awake -
he made this mistake:
instead of bread
he toasted his head.
I assure you, no take-on
his patrons thought it was bacon.

TOBIAS