Upon an island fair and green
Where not a face of white was seen
There lived a tribe of Chami-Tu
Whose numbers counted only few
Idyllic life of love and peace
But all of this was soon to cease.


Upon the Raven out at sea
An English Captain name of Mee
Appended telescope to eye
And watched as nothing drifted by
Till suddenly it came in view
The Island of the Chami-Tu.


So Captain Mee he gave a cry
Avast the craft there’s land ahoy
About the Raven swung her helm
Another one to join the realm
Swift and sharp it cut through waves
Intent to capture many slaves.


The Chami-Tu still unaware
So therefore failing to prepare
For never had they ever seen
The fighting forces of the Queen
Without a fight they all were found
Their hands and feet were tightly bound.


They never before had seen a white
Imagine do, their fear and fright
To Captain Mee this was routine
His crew were hard men, cruel and mean
They whipped each one the Chami-Tu
Just for the want of things to do.


And then they stowed them in the hold
Where all was damp and dark and cold
For many weeks they sailed the sea
Just for the love of Captain Mee
Who took them to a foreign shore
To join the likes of many more
And work in fields of sugar cane
Where all were treated with disdain.


Language changed they would not speak
Were brought a God they did not seek
Their world was different from ours
But we had Gods in Ivory Towers.
What was their crime? They never knew
They’d lived in peace the Chami-Tu
Upon their Island in the sea
Where none had heard of Captain Mee
And none had ever heard of hate
No human being deserved their fate.

A little lad sat all alone upon St Agnes wall
Everything in silence lay except a lone gull’s call.
The tide lapped slowly at the beach; drifting to and fro
Bringing in the soiled remains of what we’ll never know.
And in the sky a solitary Star hung above his head
Was this the place where he would go the day that he was dead?
But just why did he have to go?  Why did he have to die?
Emotion wrestled in his heart and he began to cry;
One tear drop in an ocean would never cause a flood,
One broken heart within a child would always do no good.
Is Heaven just a dream?  He thought, Is God a fallacy?
And even if they are for real, will they be there for me?
The star moved slowly overhead; a distant shining light,
Then slowly slipped behind a cloud and vanished out of sight.
One lonely little tear drop hung suspended on his cheek
Then nestled slowly on his lips, till he began to speak.
‘Oh little Star don’t go away and leave me all alone
So fondly have I studied you that love has slowly grown.
I am a lonely little boy I’ve never known real love
Please tell me is it Heaven there, up in the sky above?’
The star then slowly reappeared and lit the darkened sky
Has if to send an answer down it shone upon the boy.
He never knew a star could speak but he heard it in his head,
It said, ‘I was a very lonely star but already am I dead!
The light that shines upon you now will gradually die out
But there is Heaven up above of this I have no doubt.
Like you I always doubted God but still I used to pray
And now I have so many friends within the Milky Way’.
‘Oh thank-you Star’, the young lad cried; his tears were now of joy,
‘Oh thank-you God for casting light upon this lonely boy.’
He sat there in the rays of that distant twinkling light
And in his heart he felt real love, till he watched it out of sight.

I took a slow drive down the lane
And had to stop to pass a train
A train of thought that came to me
As I sat and watched the ships at sea
The ships that crossed the Desert sand
Were Camels from the Promised Land
A barren land with bright sunshine
With too much work and too much wine
It whined as it came down to ground
With whirling, whooshing, Rolls-Royce sound
Sound of mind but weak at heart
I could not get the car to start
To start the race he fired the gun
And jumped the hurdles one by one
Upon his horse his head held high
But all the others passed him by
Some were even riding bikes
It all depends on what she likes
I’ll give her roses red and green
And hope she doesn’t make a scene
A scene of epic Trojan Wars
Sold on computers in big stores
Mega-bites the Postman’s leg
Caused to hop and left to beg
Sat on corners of strange streets
The brunt of jokes from all he meets
A meeting of the mind needs brains
Not passing trains on country lanes.

I see you in my waking dreams
Where everything’s surreal.
Nothing is just what it seems
And you are not for real.

I watch you in my own mind’s eye
In my unconscious mind.
You make me laugh; you make me cry,
But life is undefined.

You’re just a wisp of fading air
A shadow in the night.
When I reach out to touch you there
You disappear from sight.

With rapid flicker in the eye
And shallowness of breathing,
Where everything is just a lie
My restless thoughts deceiving.

But there is where I want to dwell
In the vacuum of my thought
Personified somnolent spell
Where all resolves to nought.

I do not lie in solitude
I’m with a thousand friends
Let go the saddened attitude
For nothing ever ends

I am the rustling in the trees
The dew and falling rain
Raise yourself from off your knees
You won’t hear me complain.
Whenever blackbirds whistle
And frogs on lilies croak
It’s only me that’s calling
Although I haven’t spoke.
The tears that wrestle in your eyes
Won’t fall and wake the seed
It’s time I put you to the wise
I do no longer bleed.
I’d like to see a smile awake
And live upon your face
Because you’ve made a grave mistake
I do not fill this space.
I love the flowers that you bring
The kind words that you speak
I hear the hymns you sometimes sing
When you turn up each week.
But do not come in search of me
For me you’ll never find
I am not what I used to be
Since I left this world behind.
I will be with you every day
A beacon in the night
For whilst you think I’ve gone away
You’re always in my sight.
So, do not let the tears drop
Or sorrows fill your heart
Although life ends it does not stop
We’re never far apart.

I do not lie in solitude
My bed is warm and dry
No more the saddened attitude
Just look up to the sky.

I am the fenestration man
I come to bring you light,
To brighten up your dullest day
And switch the day from night.
To lift you out of sadness,
Bring warmth to aching souls,
But first we must decide upon
Just where to place the holes.
We’ll open up the South- face,
Take sections from the West.
I’m sure that if you sanction it
I’ll do for you what’s best.
You say you want fenestras
In every rising wall,
So that is what you’ll get my dear,
Some large, some round, some small.
The glass will be translucent,
The wood of finest Oak.
There’s satisfaction guaranteed;
For you they’ll be bespoke.
Your neighbours will be gob smacked;
It’s something they’ve not seen.
To say you’ll make them envious,
They’ll be the brightest green.
And you will see it all my lad;
Sat here within your manor.
All because you sent for me,
Your fenestration planner.

Duck upon the water
Got your bottom wet
Don’t you think you ought a
Go and see a vet
You might find to your surprise
That you will get the cramp
Because you know it’s none too wise
Sitting in the damp
You could get a runny bill
Might even get the flu
I hope you’ve been and made a will
Cause this will never do
Why don’t you have a gentle fly
No need to play the fool
Get that backside warm and dry
Don’t keep it in the pool
Don’t just sit there dithering
Not listening to a word
Your bottom is still withering
You silly little bird.