Every second
Every minute
Every hour
Every day
We paint patterns
On the great canvas of our lives

Patterns that direct us along
Familiar avenues

Patterns that lead us
To draw predictable conclusions

Patterns that drive us
Into the same dead ends

Patterns that can make us feel
Helpless
And subject to the forces of destiny

Until
One day
We realise
That we cannot live happily
In this way
That we must change our canvas
And describe a new pattern

Through the re-orientation of our minds
And a revolution of
The beliefs we hold firmly
In the depths of our hearts
Somehow
We decide to change our pattern

A new canvas
Is born
And a brilliant
Work of art
Is created afresh

This must be
A turning point

All that is done
Can be done differently

All that has been said
Can be spoken afresh

Things that were believed
Can be disbelieved

Things that have been learned
Can be unlearned

I
You
She
He
Can
Live
Differently

This
Is
A
Turning point

I finished my book
A classic novel
And now I miss
The companionship
Built through journeying with
That main character

For the last few weeks
I looked forward
To being with him
Thinking with him
And wishing for him
As he travelled
And lived out
His fictional life

In that sacred space
Our two lives intertwined
And I was transported
From my own cares
Into his world

And now it is over
I must address
My own life
And
I must find
Another book

I hunger
For your body
Your external incarnation
Your entity
Yet I know
That beneath your skin
Flows the river
Of all of your
Hopes
Dreams
Disappointments
Experiences
Victories
Heartbreaks
D­esires
And
Sufferings

I thirst for your physicality
But I cannot fathom
Your internality
And the alchemistry
That we will forge
If our beings
Ignite
And our souls
Elide

A day
Of waiting
With nerve endings
Tingling
Slips by

Finger tips
Tremor
With evolving
Expectations of
Celebrations
And gatherings
Of loved ones

Time advances
So slowly
As we wait
Together

And then
Suddenly
Like a bullet
Time accelerates
Rapidly
Unstoppably

And we approach
The moment

And the show
Begins

To pursue
Freedom
Means to break
The chains of authority
To embrace
With compassion
One’s own life
And to summon light
From the darkest corners

Only the free
Have known the darkness of despair
Only the free
Have looked into oblivion
And chosen to continue
To stand alone
To walk proudly
In their own skin

Freedom
Is to break through
The binding cocoons
Of society
And unfurl
One’s unique and fragile wings
Of creativity

A march of freedom
Has no easy path
Only steep ascents
And treacherous crevasses
And yet only the brave
Will experience
The incomparable
Joy
Of liberation

I’ve been called to see the ‘Head Master’
It makes my stomach churn
I somehow thought I’d outgrown this
But perhaps I haven’t after all

I want to get it over with
Will I be told off?  Expelled?
Or is there good news just for me?
Who can tell?  Who can tell?

I have a clear conscience
I hold my head up high
I’ve done the very best I can
I’ve tried and tried

Someone’s got it in for me
I really think they have
I think they want to kick me hard
And beat me to the ground

Get up again and carry on
Get up and face the storm
I really need a victory
To prove the mystic law

Above the silent train tracks
A dose of renewal
Drifts through this hazy spring morning

Floating seeds gently dance
In warm currents of air
And a mother tree sighs in the breeze
As she releases her offspring
Into this soft morning
With a prayer that they
Will find their way

Thousands of furry parcels
Floating up and down
Glide slowly westwards
In front of my sleepy eyes

The sweet air is laden with promise
And all I can do is wonder
At this fairy-like menagerie
Of spring

Thoughts
Have
Power

My thoughts
Are mine

Yours
Are yours

Am I selling my thoughts?
Are they worth more than yours?

Are you paying for my thoughts?
Am I paying for yours?

Do you own me?
Do you own what I think?

Do I think I own you?
Do I think I own my own thoughts?

Whose thoughts belong to who?

Who owns
Intellectual
Property?

Swaying parallel lines
Tender white waves
Smooth curves of earth
Tall green stems

Soaring apparitions
Reflected perspectives
Voyaging vessels
Large and small

A collection of separate desires
All obeying the sun
Dancing to its rhythm
Determinedly

If the sun should ever falter
And fail to shine
How confusing and chaotic
Our lives would become

The sun is hope
And I am a child
We are all children of the sun
Rays of hope

Watching people
We observe growth
Life within life
Life giving hope

All are nurtured
And find their home
In the kingdom
Of the eternal sun

Why do demons
Wake me at dawn
And keep me
From resting my muddled head?

Is it fear of dying
That wakes me from slumber
And shakes my heart
Like a broken whisk

Dying will not be so bad
I think
Not so frightening
After all

Throughout my days
I dream
That life should be better

Though I wake exhausted
From the turmoil of my worries
Reality is never worse than the fear

Silent is this night
Though storms rage within me
Still is the air
Though my heart beats wildly
Fickle are my feelings
As my mind works frantically
Battered is my soul
As I face new deadlock
Constant are the words
Of great authors
To whom I turn
In my hour of need

Professional Bully
Whispering gossip
Slandering others
Behind their backs
You undermine confidence
Turning weak followers
Against the kindest of souls

Professional bully
You cringe and fawn
With the high ranking order
You flutter your eyelids
At the biggest boss

Professional bully
You are sweetness personified
At the top table
Yet you spit scorn
At subordinates
Despising their weaknesses
Exposing their faults

Professional bully
You play out your childhood
Disguising your agonies
With cold clinical acumen
Titles are everything
And positioning critical
You defend your arrogance
With vicious fury

Professional bully
You have ‘friends’ in high places
Networks of networks
And hidden connections
You are part of club ugly
You tremble in isolation
Workplace your temple
Real life your void

You want me to fail?
You want me to depart?
You think I am useless?
You think I am worthless?
You think you are better than me?
You judge me?
You want me to die?

Are you my down fall?

Am I yours?

What will you do when I am gone?
Will you want me back?

I will hold on
Until it is time
To let go
And fall

I am living
My life
For me
I am connecting
With others
Who see me
For who I am
The insults
The nastiness
The bruises and scars
I bear
Show that I can survive

The allure of power and status
Is so attractive to the ordinary human
That it will often lead one
To say and do things
One would not otherwise say or do

Our inner lives are immortal
And to betray our true essence
In pursuit of such goals
Will create a legacy
Borne heavily
Like the chains
Of Jacob Marley

Is my compassion
Stronger than my greed?

Do I care more for myself
Than I do for others?

What is the balance
That need be struck?

Are the answers
To be found
In nature?

The sun always rises
Tides always turn

The skies fill our lungs with air
The soil welcomes seeds to grow

Birds never cease to sing
Rain waters quench our thirst

Night falls to grant us rest
Stars shine to give us hope

Each day
We awake
To bathe
In lakes of compassion
Without even noticing

If you wish
To be free
You need
To understand
That you
Are beautiful

Shallow understanding
Of this world
Is insufficient

A profound insight
Into your life
Is necessary
You must have
Strong character
Perseverance
Endurance

Then
You will experience
The true joy
Of being
Who you are

Twenty two twenty two
Alone
Quiet
In a private place
In my home
Silent

Twenty two years ago
I was twenty two
And twenty two year before that
I was born

Twenty two twenty two
I would like
To live you
Twice over again

Eighty eight
Is my goal
To live
Two more lifetimes
Perhaps I will become
Twice as wise

If I should ever come to read this
Twenty two years from now
I will remember this moment
With fond nostalgia

Twenty two twenty seven
Five minutes has passed in writing
And I finish
My day

Spider man hoods
Limp pallid elders
Obese wheelchair pushers
Hot dog munchers
Sunglasses
Clouds
Donut aroma
Sugary slush
Blond hair and piercings
Missing teeth
Leggings
Teenage haircuts
Flashing lights
Flags
Fat arses
False fingernails
Wailing sirens
Round we go
Round we go
Ice cream and stomach aches
Muddy beaches
Calliope
Tattoos and cleavage
Buckets of candy floss
Helter skelter
Midriffs and teeth
Give me a wave
Or give me a wink
Chips and mayonnaise
**** fake cigarettes
Piercings and seagulls
Buttocks and shorts
Brand new trainers
Beer guts
High heels
Scars and pop music
Screaming rapture
Moonlight and buggies
Exhausted children
Sunlight
Sunset
Nighttime
Sleep

Every spliff
Is another step
Towards
Madness
And another step
Away from
Reality

I cannot deny
I am frightened

Fearful of things
That I don’t yet know

Things that I feel
I cannot change

I wonder if the path
I have set for myself
Is the correct one

Or if I can find
Meaning in the choices
I am making

Why is this road
Such a long one?

Why must I wait
For happiness to arrive?

I want to let go
Of all that is surplus

And hold close
That which is needed

It is certain
That I must advance
If I am to send forth
The flowers of my life

What are you looking at
With your staring blue eyes?

Are you not yet awake?
Are you somewhere else?

In a dream land?
Faraway?

Time passes quietly
As you gaze into...
Who knows where

I won't break your reverie
I will respect it

Let it happen
Watch it happen

Let you be
In it

It is magical
And beautiful

As are you
As are you

Muddy
Slippery
Wet
Grey
Brown
White
Unpredictable
Quiet
Determined
Curved
Multifaceted
S­leepy
Cross
Layered
Blonde
Brown
Yellow
Green
Speckled
Parallax
H­orizon
Fresh
Mobile
Itinerant
Watching
Silent
Resting

Only
Humans
Know
Death
Will
Come

Poeisis
The act of formation
Making
Something
New

I
Am
Making
This
For
You

This
Creation
Lives
For
The first time

In
The minds
Of twenty first
Century
People

Educate
Educere
To Lead
Forth

Educopoiesis?
To lead
Through making?

Making ourselves?
Letting others
Make
Something
Of
Themselves?

Governments
Come
And
Go

They
Are
But
Necessary
Organisers
Of
Passing
Times

But the makers
The educopoeisers
Are
The ones

Who
Make
The
Future

The idea
That every single person
Is worthy
Of respect
Is so simple

And yet
Why do we find
A million and more reasons
To fight this truth?

People driving trains
People lighting fires
People telling stories
People making tyres

People making music
People shining shoes
People steering satellites
People reading news

People cleaning toilets
People sweeping streets
People planting flowers
People cutting meat

People stitching dresses
People drawing maps
People tying knots in ropes
People cleaning taps

People washing babies
People driving trucks
People underwater
People roasting ducks

People washing bed sheets
People making kites
People digging gardens
People working nights

People singing opera
People counting tax
People picking cotton
People rubbing backs

People in the underground
People picking litter
People mending broken bones
People brewing bitter

People flying aeroplanes
People making beds
People working down the drains
People getting wed

Where
Would
We
Be

Without
People?

There is light creeping through
The dark folds
Of our house

There is kindness
Lurking beneath
Words that have been spoken

There is a space that
Can be found
For us to exist
Together

So
Let’s take a cup
Of wine
And bury
The hatchet

Let’s be grateful
For all the work
We have done

On this evening
Let’s rest our tired bodies
And take comfort


For tomorrow will yield
Wonders
Unknown to us

This is not about
What I alone
Can give to you  

This is about
What you do
With the gifts
I am offering

Living beings
Choose to live

Our parents
Sustain us

What do we give
In return?

Parent child
Parent child
Which is which?

When do we change
From one to another?

The hand that takes
Becomes the hand that gives

From receiving  
To giving
To sustain
A life

If no one
Gives
Who can grow
From child to parent?

If no one receives
Who can learn
To be a parent?

Giving receiving
Growing growing

Receiving giving
Forever
Growing

This is a world
Of children
And parents

Let the children
Be children

And let the parents
Be parents

You say
You are sorry

That's noble
And brave

But what I want
Is change

Only then
Will the apology
Mean something real
To me

On this day
May 3rd 2016
I will stand stronger than ever

I will not capitulate
To obstacles that are placed in front of me

I will no longer endure
Insidious patterns of abuse
That I have accepted in my life

Instead I will listen
To the inner voice of justice
The voice that champions
The human rights of all people

I will not accept the petty taunts
And stealthy disregard of peoples
No matter what or where their background

I will be a person who is part
Of a movement of change

I will not be afraid of fear
I will hold it close
Recognising that within fear
Lies the possibility of change

I will bring
Repressed feelings to light
And oxygenate the infections
That are buried deep.

I will not fear
The shouting voices of blame

I will be the person
I was meant to be

From this day
I accept responsibility
And will take
One courageous step
After another

I will not be afraid of heights
Any more

The hand I was dealt
Was the hand that I chose
I came here to fix
Things that nobody knows

My hair may grow greyer
My muscles fall weak
But my heart, it grows stronger
With every beat

The journey internal
Is far greater than
The hundreds of miles
Of a marathon man

To learn how to care for
This thing they call life
Means fighting to break through
All troubles and strife

Through joyful connections
With friends dear and true
We become what we wanted
Unique me and you

Compose yourself!

Make of yourself
Whatever you want your life to be

You are not destined
To live in chains

Rather you are destined
To soar above treetops
Painting the universe
With your own unique
Song of life

Compose yourself!

Because only you
Possess the innate
And unique
Genius
With which to create
The world’s first
Symphony
Of you

Compose yourself!

Compose
Your
Self

As I hear
The news
Of your deep commitment

Of your vow
I know
Joy

A tide of warmth
Bathing my chest
A light breeze
Caressing my neck
A smile
So natural
To refresh my face

And
Gratitude

Deep gratitude
That you
Will join
On this great journey

Today
I won
And lost
And won
And lost

I was singled out
Caught out
Tripped up
By myself

And I crashed down
And got up
Again
And apologised

It’ll be all right
In the end

Today
I lost
And won
And lost
And won

And I still experienced
The smiling faces
Of those
Who care

Those In power
Are only in power
If I make
Them so

Today
I lost my power
Gained my power
Lost my power
Gained my power

I lose
By failing

I win
By learning

Such is
The human way

And now
Sweet laughter
Rings through the air
And I
Can smile
Again

The dreams of those long gone
Echo throughout the ages
Finding home
In the hearts of the living

The hopes of the living
Connect with the desires
Of those yet to come

A golden thread binds the souls
Of all living beings
And the power of our wishes
Is greater than we can ever imagine

In my sleep
I will dream of unborn
Realities

But now
I have woken
Though am I still asleep?

I am wrong placed
This expected place
Unexpected

Someone has taken my body
And I am in theirs

I am attached
To this experience
In a most disconnected manner

We ancient beings
Travelling within fleshy physicalities
Are novices

Wading through miasmic soup
Holding our breath
Plunging for meaning
Nothing but ambulant meanderers

Rays of energy
Pass unnoticed
Through our cartilaginous joints
And groaning sinews
As fellow bipedals
Led by hemispheric glossities
March army like
Into diurnal rhythmicals

Heart warmth
Lifts deep dungeon dwellers
From their plight

And sweet juices of hope berries
Revitalise the old

This is the Eden foundry
This, an altered nirvana
This but a displaced unreality
Is our temporary
Habitat

Our strange
Fangled
Home

So it seems
To me
That when I see
I perceive
Things differently
To you
It must be true
Because
I am me
And you are you

If I saw things
The same as you
I would be you
And you would be me
And where would that leave us?
You and me
We’d not be two
There’d not be you
Only me
Stuck with my view
And no one
With whom
To talk it through

Two views
Are more than one
Your view
Colours mine
And mine
Colours yours
Creating new views
To share
Enhancing horizons
For both
To gaze upon

So let me learn to love
What you can see
And perhaps you can trust
What I see too
Together
With our shared views
We could even create the world
Anew

Skies of grey loom overhead
The shard peers down at heavy clouds
Concrete upon concrete
Oppresses narrow strips of grass
And bluebells grow defiantly
Among heaps of *******

This racing collision of buildings
This place of invention and reinvention
This factory of services
This web of moving parts
That people strive to be part of
Is known as

London

Your eyes shine
As you gaze
Into my soul

You are pure
Optimistic
Graceful
And full of wonder

Thank the heavens
That you
Are
The future

Your potential
To create
Happiness for all
Radiates

Just as you trust me now
I trust you

If I were another man
I would hold you close
If I were another man
I would let you hold me closer
If I were another man
I would bring you flowers
If I were another man
I would read you poetry until you fell asleep
If I were another man
I would carry you over the ocean of your sorrows
If I were another man
I would honour you just as you are
If I were another man
I would be the man I want to be
If I were another man
I would be the man I ought to be

To create a different future
We have to unmake
The patterns
We have learned
In the past

To unravel
The fabric of our lives
And weave
New possibilities
Is an act
Of courage

Every effort
Lays foundations
For future generations

Small problems
Are no match
For the greater self

Be rich
In life

The sun
Never fails
To shine
Nor should we

I have been lost
In this mad world

Constructs
Surrounding me
Have engendered beliefs
That are not my own

Falsities
Introduced
By the faceless few
To guide me from
Truth

These constructs
Of gain and acquisition
Make up
Our modernist slavery
And blunt our humanity

Why aquire?
Should we not
Concern ourselves
With giving?

I have been lost
And wandered for years
In the fog
Of so called development

Trying to find
Solace
In the answers
Of others

How foolish I have been
How naive

I have been lost
And yet,
Moments of connection
Have returned me
Awakened me

And with one look
You may
Observe my heart

Looking
Deeply into my eyes
You will
Find my soul

There you will know
Who I am
There you will find
Humanity
Humility
Grace

These worldly affairs
So transient
Are of no import

I am but a spirit
Lost for a brief moment of eternity

And for a brief moment
Once more
With you

I am found

There are spaces between

Strength, weakness
Control, release
Living, surviving
Joy, pain

Fantasy, reality
Hope, despair
Love, hate
Winning, losing

There are spaces between

The moon is beyond my reach
But it is there
Softly
Resting
In the clear blue sky

I know it is there
Because I see it
But still
It is beyond my reach

I cannot see my future
But I know it is there
Unwritten
Unclaimed
Undecided
But it is there
This much I have learned
From living
And memory

I cannot see love
But I know it is there
Brooding
Swaying like currents of water
Swirling
Attracting one to another

I cannot see death
Yet I know it is there
Kind
Comforting
Mysterious
All powerful

There are spaces between
Waiting to be filled

I think
You have me in your grip
I feel
Your strangle hold
I watch
You keep me prisoner
I know
You make me old

I pray
I can escape from here
I want
To flee from hell
I wish
You would release me
I'm drowning
'Neath your spell

You know
The tricks to trap me
You’re expert
At deceit
You dominate
With anger
And force
Me to retreat

I’m stunned
With fear as you rage on
Immobile and denuded
Incapable of rational thought
Deprived and then excluded

Where is the soul
I knew of old?

When did you leave
What have you left behind?

Are you gone forever
Never to return?

Or are you trapped
Struggling to break free?

I feel the sun on my face
As I watch a faint moon rising

Knowing even the simplest of journeys
Can be the most arduous of affairs.

I will walk the world in my own way
Watching, as running water turns the mill stone of time

I live and breathe
In this golden hour

And realise the environment
Is directing me
To look inwards
And find freedom there

I may no more sail the seas
Or visit foreign lands
Though my mind desires it

So for now
I will remain with my heart
Homely
At home

Lilac flowers
Purple bud
Pink petals
Gold

Chocolate
Angel wings
Shadow
White Bowl

Time beats on
Emptily
Poison
Hearts sway

Drugged lovers
Sleeping
Their troubles
Away

Together we’re
Worlds Apart
Longing for
Peace

Waiting years
Growing old
Death
Disappears

Cover my
Body
With sleep
In your breath

Magic me
Mother fruits
Ivory
Tears

Rain falls
From the heavens
Washing the air
Cleaning
The land
And music begins

The tidal sound
Of rain
The marching rhythm
Of contact with earth and pavement

The crescendo and decrescendo
As clouds pass
The beat of droplets
Gathering from guttering
To land on resonant surfaces
Like the crackling of fire

The sky responds with greyness
Swirling haziness
I watch through my rectangular window
Dry and warm
As the symphony delights
My ears and eyes

The birds are quiet and still
They have departed for shelter
The trees stand silent, enjoying the shower
And then it is over, as quickly as it started
April shower

Your body
Is not for sale

What you show
Does not change
What is within

I cannot buy you
And you are not buying me

We are not commodity

We are more precious
Than all money

We are not measured
By the shape of our physical exterior

Instead we are known for
What we think
What is in our hearts
What we do