The young do not see the future
The same way as their seniors
Elders have traveled their own unique path
Gaining wisdom along the way

The young will take a different path
Collecting new wisdom
Learning new truths
Building society anew

Yet somehow
A bridge binds
Old and young

Hope exchanges with experience
And vitality blends
With the security of wisdom

When the old guide the young
Towards a brilliant future
Then there will be hope
For every one
Of us

A giant amber moon
Rises over the dusky estuary
Two black birds fly west
And a great ship eases silently out to sea

Coastal lights flicker
As musty salt-sea air
Hovers round street lamps

Silhouetted trees
Smile upon swaying reeds
And a saxophone blows
Sweet as chocolate

Roses fade in the twilight
Reds, pinks and yellows
All turning to darkness

This is my precious time
Alone
To witness
The magnificent amber moon
On the rise

Time is precious
Every second
An eternal opportunity
To choose
What to do

The responsibility
Of choosing
How to live
Is great

For suddenly
Life flashes by
And one is old
Older
Greyer
Wiser?

What do we choose to do?
What do we choose?
What is our goal?

The material
Is but a dream
All things formed
Will crumble
And be reformed
Differently

Nothing lasts forever

So to live
To make something last beyond
One’s lifetime
Is a choice

What will it be?

To strike out from the ordinary
And speak out against injustice
Is a choice

To trust oneself
Is a choice

To work for the happiness
Of others
Is
A choice

All will change
But life
Will continue

Whether happy
Or unhappy
Every second
We
Choose

Every day
More bad news

More to fear
Propaganda

Corruption, greed, inequality, power, ego

Have we slept for centuries
And awoken to medieval tyrannies?

This world is a stage
But we know the lines too well, do we not?

I listen but I have to switch it off

If I feed my mind with tragedy after tragedy
I will shrink and die

So, you aggressors...
You merchants of war

I refuse to buy your message of mass destruction
I refuse your rush to arms
I refuse to celebrate warring with others
I refuse to slam down my borders
I refuse to sign on your dotted line
And execute your contracts for death machinery

I will build community where I can

I will open the door for you
Clap you
Smile at you
Welcome you
Make a small connection

My gift to you will not be a nuclear bomb

When does life really begin?

If I were to ask the trees
They might say

Push your roots down
And steady yourself
The stronger you are
The longer you will live

If I were to ask the birds
They might say

Never settle in one place for too long
You should always seek
Something better
And push on
To new places

If I were to ask the sea
She would sigh and laugh
And perhaps reply

Life has no beginning
It has no end

If I were to ask the moon
It would say

Shine brightly while you can
For light fades to darkness
And all is changing

And if I were to ask the winds
They would moan and tell me

That is for you to find out

Tall grasses grow
In a holy place
Swaying softly in dusky breezes

For some
It is over

And even the moon
Laments their loss

People have made
All of this
Happen

All of it

Everyone
Without realising
Played a part

Even those...
Especially those
Who did...
Nothing

Nothing
Nothing

Slept
Slept through their instincts

Walked in a daze
Of deluded dreams
Cosseted, closeted from the tides

But the winds will catch up
And the nothing doers
Will be rid of the numbness

And return to the battle ground again and again
And again and again

Until...
One day
Dawn breaks
Most vital
And fresh
And goodness
Will appear

You speak
Words
Of such beauty
That I find
I am lifted
From my cares
And cradled
In comfort

Your truth
Resonates
Beyond death
Each sentence
Rich with layers of meaning

Animated by the living
For the living
We listen
Enchanted
By the eloquence of your great insights

Those who use their voices
To speak these truths
Though ordinary
Are champions

Together you celebrate our complexity
And through exploration
You come to know yourself
And to know others

To act
To share one’s voice upon the stage
To bring the authors message to life
Is nothing other than an act of heroism

And so I explore
Who I am
And who you are

You are not
Who I am

And I am not
Who you are

To whom
Do I belong?

Because I do want
To belong

To whom
Do you belong?

Is it to us?
Are you with me?
Or are you with them?

Who are they?
They who see things differently
They whose thoughts are so powerful
And terrifying
That they become somehow alien to me

I was born with us
You were born with them
If I was born with them
Would I leave them to join us?

Would I see things the way they do?
Would I believe what they believe?

Could I leave us to join them?
Could I?
Could you?

Is it really me and you?
Is it really us and them?
Are we a binary race?
Or are we just as one,
Reflecting the different truths
Of our environment?

I must be crossing new borders
Because I feel
So tired

I am desperately
Avoiding
How I am feeling

Wanting to cut away
From the inertia
Of my inertia

The good words were...
Actively endure
Believe in a better future...

Yet this is the hardest part
To believe

The reason why
I do not know

Part of me wants
To sabotage what I want
What I have created
And so I cry

Protect what you have created!
Celebrate it
Nurture it
Keep nurturing it
Work on it

Even if you take
Just one step forward

Find a way to focus on what you are doing
Do not listen to the voice that wants to topple you

Keep listening to and amplify
The voice that loves you

Find a way to praise yourself
And revere your potential

Live with the confidence of a bird

Constantly improve
On what you are offering

Yearn
Yearn
Yearn

Don’t believe the voice that says you are not capable
Because you are

Keep things simple
Tell things as they are

Find a way forward
Advance where you can

Even a tiny step
Will help

Take pride
In who you are

Embrace the palette
Of your life

You have earned
The right to stand tall

The right to walk with confidence

How could this day
Be anything other
Than transformative?

The door is open to you
And fresh breezes of change
Enter in

Today you celebrate
Your great victory
And dance with others

What else is there for you
But to win

Today you take ownership
Of your destiny

Remembering
The lion that roared this morning
Was you

Today
Loss became abundant
Mortality
Closer

Sitting at the altar of my life
I stare at impermanence
Longing
For release
From my ailing efforts

I repeat and repeat and repeat
And repeat
And somehow
Stand still
Growing ever so slightly
More aged

Trees sigh at my impatience
Whilst birds nest
Huddled in their branches

It is not hard to find inspiration
If one takes care to look

To win in life
Means
To never give up

There will be failures
There will be disappointments
There will be good days
And there will be bad days

But to win in life
Means continuing
To the very end

Striving
To better oneself

Yearning
To take one step further

Determining
To never ever. ever give up

Backwards
Forwards
Backwards
Forwards
The pressure
Of time
Is always
At work

Day
Night
Day
Night
We act
And rest
We act
And rest

Me
You
Me
You
Together
Apart
We live
And love

Living
Dying
We share
Our lives
The new arrive
The old survive

Ebb
Flow
Inspire
Expire
Hush
And be
Just who
You are

Does anyone disagree
That we have to stop
Killing each other?

Does anyone agree
That we have to stop
Killing each other?

On this day
The world can see clearly
The lies
That we knew
Were told
And sold
To the people

On this day
The photographs
Tell deeper truths
As bereaved mothers
Hold pictures of their departed sons

On this day
The self righteous leader
Is named by one as
The worst terrorist of all

On this day
The people
Are at a loss
To know
Whom to trust

On this day
Although my heart sinks low
And I grieve
At all loss
I will try to believe
That we can change

One
More
Day
Passes

In
This
Strange
World

I am
One
Day
Older

And
No wiser

I realise
I know
Less
Every day

But
Know
Myself
More

Soft cat
Your crescent body
Sleeping sunken on the sofa
Your nose buried in your tail
Your eyes shielded by your paw
What are you dreaming of?

Soft cat
Do you dream
Of being stroked?
Or are you chasing butterflies?
Do you imagine
Cream and milk?
Or are you off hunting
Or perhaps climbing trees?

I know you will rise
When I do
And we will start our day together

But for now
Soft cat
Dozing
In peace
I wish you
Sweet dreams

A heavy pyrexial over coat
Hunches my shoulders

A tight coil
Compresses my forehead

And my mind stutters
Incapable of making
The simplest of decisions.

I slip unnoticed
From being well
To unwell.

The descent is fast and certain

Recovery will be slow

And so
Is the pattern
Of being.

All I yearn for
Is deep refreshing sleep.
I would I could drift
Into oceans of it
Only to return to
A brighter shore

An island bedecked
With glistening fruits
And lush futures.

Instead, the train timetable
Awaits me

And I will iron my shirt
Before bed.

I hear you
But my eyes are closed
And I shan’t see you

Laughter
The sway of branches
In the soft breeze
Each small leaf adding to a collective sound
That shimmers and shakes
In the cool evening air

A low constant murmur
Of bees
Working to perfect a new nest

The low grumble of aircraft ascending
Forging into the heavens

The creak of my chair
Laughter from somewhere far away

Birds singing softly

Gentle conversations
Between husband and wife
Tender exchanges illustrating
A lifetime of togetherness

The tap of my china cup on the garden table
The scrape of slippers on the concrete of my back garden

A siren approaches and passes
Disturbing the tranquillity
Momentarily
Before a coo of woodpigeon
Returns me to my meditation

I tune my ear
To the murmur of the bees

And I wish silently
That I could stay here
Forever

Rip me from the *****
That nourishes me

Separate me
From safety

Deposit me in
Whirlpools of unfamiliarity

Stare down at me
With cold eyes

Breathe the air that floats between us
As if you are more deserving of it

And then you
Will cause me to feel
Shame

Take me to the playground
And drop me in
Circles of torment

Expose me
De-clothe me

Ridicule me
Pinch me and scrape me

Hurl your
Bullying fists

Because the heart you possess
Is that of a frightened child

Because you perpetrate
That which you dread

Shame

Though hot blood pumps
Through your temples
Thumping like a kettle drum
As you stand on the precipice

Though you strut as champion
Of a small world
Master of
A frail castle

In your bed
White fever  
Grips your throat in the middle of the night

And bad dreams
Clutch your organs
Piercing them with fire

And you feel

Shame

The quivering impotence
Of being the one who
Shames
Others

And the emptiness
And the loneliness

Are more awful
Than the temporary relief
Of the bullying

For you are alone

And you carry
This great weight

Until one day
You unpack
Your burden

And ask
Why?

Why do I do this?

Why am I alone?

Why?

The storm approaches
And a horse on a chain
Tries to run free
Yet all she can do
Is circle

Tired graffiti
And coils of barbed wire
Blur in the impatient air

A ******* a bench sits cross legged
And flocks circle the fields
Without knowing that she is waiting

Sparks will fly
As bearded men
Return to their dwellings
And youths **** on beer bottles

She is an oak
Without knowing
Strong without realising
Many branches growing

She holds firm
To the earth
And rings
Gather around her

I am the watcher
Of such things
As they pass before
My window

In sleep
Free
From the uncertainties
Of modern day life
We restore
Our selves

We wake
And struggle
To tread the long road of life
With dignity

My country
Isolated
Spawns
Rich politicians
Who play games
Quoting Shakespeare
As they go

Madmen
Toying with each other
In the playground of their privilege

What have you done?
Wake up!
Remember
The people
The people

It is they
You should serve

Be
For them
Serve
Them
The people
Are sovereign

They
Are
The country

Money for food
Money for housing
Money for transport
Money for warmth

Money for the council
Money for insurance
Money for clothing
Money for washing

Money for watching
Money for joining
Money for making
Money for living

Money
Money
Money
Money

What comes in
Goes straight on out
What goes out
Goes somewhere

Somebody somewhere
Is getting
Rich
Whilst I
Seem to be getting poor

I have my family
I have my bed
I have some things that others don’t
I have my pride
And I have my dignity
And I have hope
Hope

To build up my account with hope
And widen my circle of friends
Is
And will be
The greatest gift
Of all

Are we born free?
Or are we
Born into a slavery
Of our own making?

Is playing politics
To win an argument
And propel the self
Into society’s spotlight
An act of greatness?

The debate may have concluded
But reality remains

‘Go back to where you come from!’
Is that the victory cry
Our nation yearns for?

Are we born free?
Or are we
Born into a slavery
Of our own creation?

Sometimes I just don’t know
My country anymore
And it shames me
To call it home

So for now
Another rallying cry
Love
Share
Co-operate
Give

Live
Together
Harmoniously
Love
Love!

Why oh why
Do I waste my time
Watching England
Play football?

Each tournament
They invent
A fresh way of
Tormenting their fans
With a new found
Mediocrity
And their total inability
To just
Win

Raindrops nod the leaves
Like the reply of piano keys
And the music of nature
Swirls
In abundance

Here
Birds are happy
Pure grasses carpet
Ancient Earth

Gazing
Into the distance
Eternal friends
Have joined hands
To carry each other
Over uneven
Mountain passes

Though my feet are weak
My spirit is strong
And I will bathe in
Great waterfalls
Of re-invigorating
Sounds

With you
My companions
I am truth
And you
Great tree
Lend your boughs
As shelter
To blackbirds
Who have time
To live
Time
To sing

Some days
I am like a tiny stick
Carried atop the currents
Of a rushing river

Other days
I am like a stake
Firm grounded
Leaning into the force
And causing waves
To part

Age of division
Where nations
Turn on each other

Our people
Made up of mixtures
Are become divided

Diversity
Our great strength
Rubbished, discarded

Anger and arrogance
Soak shouts of 'independence'

What can we learn
From the work
Of the founders?

Have we not stood
On the shoulders
Of giants?

Years of toil
To unify peoples

Cracked
Overnight
Exited
Gone

The cheers
Of the victors
Ring
Like rolls
Of thunder

The roar of the followers
The howling of wolves

Vincent
You are deeply loved
By your mother
Sister and father
You bear your life
With quiet dignity

Vincent
You suffer in complete silence
Showing the world
Your ability
To endure

Vincent
Yours in not an easy path
Struggle and dependence
Are your constant companions
And yet you draw out love
From everyone you meet

Vincent
You unlock compassion
As quietly you watch
The world turning
In circles of energy

A curtain fell over you
Young Vincent
Shock waves and tremors
Glazing your eyes
As you lost air

You departed from consciousness
Quietly teaching
The fragility of life
On the most ordinary of days

Vincent
You took me back
Twenty years
You unlock memories
From those who have not even met you

Yours is a journey
Unlike another
Quietly
With dignity
You lead
The way

Betrayal
Has come
Hidden
But visible
Left to be found
Surprising
Yet not

Sharp
Like a dagger
A piercing
Of safety
Dull
Like concussion
A kick
In the heart

Damaged
Are children
Broken
Is Trust
Weakened
Are families
Branches
Are Cut

Betrayal
Of hearts
Assumes
Dumbness
Of victims
A slur
On humanity
Driven
By
Self

Betrayal
Of union
Years of great effort
Crumble
Like sandcastles
Under your feet

Betrayal
Great robber
Of my human
Dignity
Futures are frozen
Our cords
Are cut

Betrayal
Most human
Act
Of cowardice
Unspoken
Discovered
We meet
To part

Evening sky
White and grey
Silver and blue
Textured before my eyes
Describe the heavens
Above me
As I rest on earth

I sway and pass
Between
Parallel lines
And liquid bodies
Entertain my eyes

This experience
Can not contain me
I choose to live
I choose to be

Fields of long grasses
Sway in the
Iridescent light

A canal of greenery
Ushers me safely
Home

Home

A thousand miles away
Candles burn
Quietly
Fluttered by breezes

For some
Time is running out
For me
Time is rushing in

The future
The future
Ever open and waiting

Communities of winged creatures
Gather together in the humidity of the evening
Perhaps a greater consciousness
Directs their dance
Down
Up
Over
Side
Down
Up
Repeat
Repeat

Gather together for the wonderful dance
Stay with the group
Always together
Dense in the middle
Shimmering vibrations
Sharing your aerial choreography

The closer together
The more intricate the flight
Not one on top
Not one leader
Togetherness
In the dance
Of evening

It is a time of day
To rest the body
Absorb the birdsong
Breathe the fragrant air

To compose poetry
To write verse
A poetic time of day

Evening skies
Blue and white
Drift overhead
Blue
And
White

Blue
And
White

There is one thing
That I can do now

And that is
To write

My critical voice
Is so strong.

You are…

A failure
No good
Burnt out
Ageing
Depressed
Uncertain
Unable to plan for the future
****!
****!
****!

Disappear!
Extinguish your life!
Eradicate your spirit!

And yet
If I coax myself
My wise spirit knows…

Never to give up
Even though hands can scarecely move
Even if the heart can barely beat
Even if eyes just want to close

Never underestimate one’s mission
Never slander one's potential

Look for the things
That I am not seeing

Challenge
That which I don’t believe

Discover
What needs to change

Work
Towards something great

From here I can grow
From here I will grow

If I am kind enough
To myself

The surface
Like a skin
Remains
Unbroken

Beneath
Limbs are thrusting
Powerfully
Lungs are straining
Burning
Bursting
With effort

Above
Eyes are watching
Waiting
As sunlight ripples
Innocently
Across patterns
Of liquid fabric

Two separate worlds
Joined
Without seems
Lie side by side
A shift in one
Swallowed
By the other

Nervous
Minutes pass
As weight
Pushes down
Pressing
Air into water
Longer
Longer
Until

Life
Breaks through
Every fibre
Stretched
Expressing
The miracle of transcendence
The ability
Of existence
In two worlds

Drift
Away
From
The relentless noise
Of the mind
And enter
Another world

A space
Of latency
A realm
Of potential

All comes through the body
All that we are
All that we do
Is carried in our flesh

Look at your fingers
Look at your knuckles
And wonder
What things
Have you done
With your hands
What things will you do?

Latency
Unborn
Yet to arrive
But certain to
In time
Pervades existence

Dig deep
Into your soul
And allow
Your dreams
To materialise

Give flight to your greatest desires
Give them space, air, room
And then
Imagine
Your dreams
Transforming into reality

Allow yourself
To become the protagonist
Of your desires

And live
With renewed
Hope

It is here
That the bees gather nectar
Freely

It is here
That the birds sing
Happily

It is here
That flowers display
Their most fragrant blooms

It is here
That nature
Meets
Artistry

It is here
That I send
A message of love to the world

It is here
That I send
A message of hope

It is here
That I send
A message of peace

It is here
That I send
A message of unity

We can
Look with friendliness

We can
Connect with kindness

We can
Understand our purpose

We can
Create the world once more

At the end of this day
Two children no longer have a mother

A husband no longer has a wife
She was gunned down

Swept away by the fury
Of a political argument

I think of her children
Tucked up in their beds
Stunned at the madness
Of the adult world

Silent on this night

Young people
Do not despair
Do not lose hope

The tragic frailty
Of your forefathers
Need not be your destiny

This society is yours to change
Choose another way
Pave your path with dignity and empathy
And never join the ranks
Of a violent few

One day
Guns will only line
The cases of museums
No longer will they terrorise
The citizens of the world
One day humans will live as one people
And children will no longer mourn their lost mothers

Let me make you feel like this

Let me make you feel like that

Let me guide you into the unknown

Let me give you this experience

And then

I will present you

With my bill

Yes, I will

Present you with my bill

Did you not know

That feeling

Costs?

We have monetised it
Wrapped it up
Processed it
And valued it

And now if you want it
We will deliver it to you
In packages to suit your needs

Just, don't ask for it
For free
Don't demean yourself
And don't insult me

After all
Feelings cost

And costs add up
And everything must have its price

If this world is going to balance its books

We need to make it pay
Don't we?

I wish I were you
I wish you were me
Just for today

I wish I didn’t see
Grief stricken faces
In the papers

I wish we could talk and talk
And talk
To untangle the mess of the world

I wish that we could all start over
Build society once more
Put all wrongs to right

I wish I could tell
Comforting stories
To quieten all anger and hatred

I wish I could
I wish I could
I wish I could

Roots grow
beneath walls
Intertwining
As if
Holding hands

The barriers we build
Separate us from each other

Yet, roots pass under, fearlessly
Birds fly over naturally

For you and I
Some doors seem impenetrable
Forever closed

My roots
Pass beneath your walls

And your soul flies like a bird
Above my barriers

When we die
There is no more separation

We will be one
We are one

I awake from a nightmare
And feel relief
At the slow realisation
That it was
But a dream

And yet
My body still grips the tension
Of the terror which tormented me
In the dawn hours

The nightmare aroused
Deep anxieties
That I know I carry
And for the morning
I struggle to recover

On this same day
I see a woman
On the seashore
Washing her sore legs with seaweed

The white windmills of Tilbury
Turn the industrially poisoned air
And boys punch each other
At the train station

And then
Music

Created
Sung by brave people
For each other
Lifts me of out of my body
To a higher spiritual plane
Returns me to my memories
Of younger days

I am carried back
Reliving my emotions
Sharing and remembering
Experiences of years gone by

I am older
Yet somehow I am re-connected
To my younger self

My heart swells with emotion
Nostalgia

This is what art can do

This is why I live
With music

This is why I live
With art

Standing
In a ring
You pray

Overhead
Bells are ringing
Gladly

You obey the rhythm
That you have created
Listening
Watching

The leader
Reorders the movement
You respond
With precision

You rise and fall
Are stretched
And returned

You remain
Fixated
Grounded

Silently you work
Communicating
Subliminally

Sending messages
Above the treetops
Across the town

Tidings
Of hope
Alarums
Of communion

You are
A little known group

Operatives
Of ancient tradition

A community
Of enthusiasts

A family
Of bell ringers

People watching people
Gazing at screens
Crouching behind veneers
Of interconnected
Digital
Fibre optic
Cabling

Safely connected
Safely disconnected
To their
Subjects
Objects

Judging them
Demanding cosmesis
Ordering alteration
Controlling behaviours
Controlling people
In an out of control world

The watched
Conforming
Naively
Desperately
Daily
To gross
Aesthetic stereotypes

Pandering
To the hits

Prostituting
For numbers

Disordered society
In which watchers
Hold power

Are you asked
How many views do you have?

Is it enough?

Are you popular
Enough?

Are you worth
Enough?

Are you ever
Enough?

The mysteries of the universe
Are greater than I can fathom
How grateful I am for this

Life is better unpredictable

So do not worry if I seem deranged
I am but a bird on the breeze of time
And I call your name fiercely
To unleash the light from within my being

All I see is beauty
And the need to create a better life

Perhaps this earth is crumbling
And trusted friends are in short supply

But I dream always of the future
To know and understand human greatness

To hear the sounds of peace
And to bring comfort to my eternal soul

Courage is grace
Grace under pressure

I saw it written  
In a florist's book

As I walk down the street
I see my old friend

He greets me cheerfully
And somehow he laughs

He's going to be fired
After thirty odd years

Grace under pressure
Grace under pressure

Each day I rotate
And I spin and I turn

How can I create?
Can I create?

I need to give more
Be more, learn more

Turn my old heart
Inside out

Get what's within me
Onto the outside

I can’t hold it in
I have to release

No matter how ugly
Life's not always pretty

Sometimes it's sick
Unhappy, unholy

But that’s what it is
That's just what it is

I will wonder aloud
How to use my power

In which direction
To focus my strength

To be as I am
Just as I am

And pass days with dignity
One then another.

The Dragon Blood tree
On the isle of Socotra

Stands tall and quiet
Uncomplainingly

The Dragon Blood tree
Shows grace under pressure

It lives as it should
Courageously

Not a word
I can tell what you are feeling
By how you move

Not a word
Even the slightest curve of your mouth
Tells me everything

Not a word
You lift up your lover
Effortlessly, gracefully

Not a word
Your body bends
Into a million different shapes

Not a word
In perfect synchronicity
You decorate the stage

Not a word
You hold our gaze
Transporting us from this world

Not a word
Yours is the story
Waiting to be told

Not a word
Yours is the dance
Of the soul

There are good days
And there are bad days

There is light
And there is dark

There is despair
And there is hope

Somehow
There is always hope

To build life around hope
No matter how or why
Is truly courageous

If we can believe in the darkness
We should also believe in the light

Sometimes you just have to take a step forward
Off the precipice
Into the unknown

A lone swan
Will fly across the sky
Searching for its lover

We should fly
Across the skies of our lives
Searching
For happiness

Roses climb high
And display
Their coloured petals
In the early summer sun

Bees gladly draw
Of their nectar

And I can see things
Differently

How to belong
Amongst other peoples
Happiness?

How to listen
To outpourings of love
And sit comfortably
Oneself

How to restrain
Confusing tears
In times
Of celebration?

How to
Find one’s own space
In the midst of others spaces?

How to find comfort
Alone with oneself

Can’t please nobody
Whatever I do
Everyone got somethin’
To tell me, it’s true

People keep yellin’
"Do this!
Do that!
But don’t even
Think about
Goin’ near that!"

Can’t please nobody
Though I try and I try
Sometimes I wanna
Jes' lay down and die

"You’d betta think
‘Bout what you gon’ do
Coz everything
Gonna come right back
On you!"

Can’t please nobody
Whatever I say
But livin’ in chains
Jes' won’t win me the day

I’m gonna break out
And be who I choose
Even if doin so
Give me the blues

I am a man
Who gon’ live my life free
Voices keep yelling!
S’no **** thing to me

Can’t please nobody
Whatever I do
Everyone got somethin’
To tell me s’true