I open my eyes after the longest time
searching for any remnants of the light
that used to brighten the corners of my soul

and suddenly realise the search was in vain
that the light inside kept the night outside at bay
and that darkness had saturated my soul

I close my eyes and beathe in the darkness
focusing inwards on those dying embers
using the darkness to fan their faint glow

and ever so slowly start to see echoes of light
softly penetrating the darkness within
and a trickle of hope lingers on the horizon

We sit here
   Bemoaning our fate
On this rock we call Earth

The only one
   In billions of light years
Deigned to jump start our birth

Sheltering us
   From cosmic rays

Surrounding us
   With abundant life

Supporting us
   Despite our ways

And yet...

We still sit here
   Basking in self pity and hate
Pillaging this lonely rock called Earth

A smattering of stars
     Strewn across the sky
Little pinpricks of light
     Blinking in the soft night air

Planets and Moons
     Suns and Stars
Constellations and Galaxies
     Clustering together
Against the darkness between them

Light from far-off worlds
     Light visible to us
          Light visible to each other
     Light the language of the universe
Light the conversation in the multiverse

And yet we stand here
     Human Beings on this our planet Earth
Contemplating in the soft night air

Feeling large and powerful and in charge
     Our hand is larger than those pinpricks of light
We hold up our hands and block out the light
     And darkness swallows the night

Feeling small and insignificant and adrift
     We are programmed to seek the light
And in this seeking we come ever closer
     To understanding the true nature
          Of the conversation of the multiverse

I have a strange
      black
         cat,
      with bright
   green eyes,
and a curved back
   but truly strange
      is it's
         At
            Ti
               Tude
that all reason
                  defies

If you go against the current
You become too weary to go on
And eventually sink into darkness

If you go with the flow
You watch as the world goes by you
And eventually drift into indifference

If you can find balance
You make small adjustments as you go
And eventually survive the experience

Cascades
   Cascades of thoughts
Like stars sprinkled on a cloudless night sky
   Emotions clouding me
   Emotions crowding in on me
Like the grayness of a rainy day

The road behind me is winding but clear
The road ahead of me is shrouded in mist
   Walking on because I must
Eyes wide open because I must
Words rippling around
   There must have been a point
   A point to it all

Words strumming the echoing strings of the emotions
How much of me have I lost?

Shadowy shapes in the darkness ahead
Taking form then melting away
Is there more to me than meets the eye or less?

Fragmented
   Chaos
      Space
Whirlwinds of Nothingness
   Time lost
      A white light in the distance
Hope
   A yellow flicker-flicker in the dark
Peace
   Possibilities

Undertaking to puzzle the pieces back together again
All the king’s horses and all the king’s men

Love is the glue
Hope is the catalyst
Light is the way shown ahead

Shadows slowly ebbing
Peace returning
Pieces
Needing to be whole again

“Why? Why? Why?” I shout inside
But on the outside I nod and smile

No peace
Just pieces of me
Shreds of me dangling in the wind

Rambling
I am
Sensing it all
Touching the sides of places not touched in a while

The Poet inside me awakes
Chaos thrashing around
And a smile to me makes
A rippling rebound

Ripples
Ripples with potential
  Potential to upset
Potential to change
Potential to rearrange

Turning the world around
The right way up
The right way round

Rounding off my love affair with myself
Self-judging
Self-repressing
Self-loathing
Self-denying
Se­lf-controlling

So self-satisfied I don’t need you

Self-burying
Deep
Deeper still
Deeper within

I can
I will
I am

A step in the right direction
One step away from chaos
One step closer to the truth
Chaos is just a state of otherness

Ebbs and flows
   Ebbs
And
   Flows

A ripple effect on a still pond
Where ripples meet
Not a sound
Not a breath of movement
Immobile
The eye of the storm

Peace
Less pieces of me
More sanity
Another bad taste in the mouth
Another plane of existence challenged

But more importantly
Opposite ripples meet
While together they are moving in the same direction
With the same goals
With the same plans
With the same dreams

Purpose

I am split inside
Needing to join the apparent contradictions of me
Into a single entity

Whole
At inner peace
At inner strength
At inner me

Rhyming
Reason
Purpose
Peace

Self-doubt
  Always constant
Changing moving
  Movement changes
Chaos order
  Ordering chaos

Up down
Down up
Sideways?
Surely it’s just a state of mind

Rebel
   Peace Maker
One and the same
   Living side by side at opposite sides of being

Waxing prophetical
   Philosophical
      Lyrical
         Satirical

Yet

Inside weaving a web
A soft cushion against the harshness of the world

Surely I have said enough
But not nearly enough at all

Sleep, as the healing within begins
Waking on a different plane

Slowly but surely
   Hope
Peace
   Definitely
      Me

Do I have something to say to the world?
Or merely a need to listen to myself listen to the world?

Darkness so resilient
   It's vastness is too great to grasp
Throbbing veins of light, so feint,
   Turn out to be clusters of galaxies,
Each unique, a masterpiece, brilliant

   Black Hole so silent
Slowly slowly swallowing
   Devouring the light
Gathering, trapping, binding,
   Each galaxy's unwavering pilot

Stardust cradled with light
   Nebulae stirring and Supernovas exploding
Worlds colliding and Comets a-flight
   Violent beginnings and violent endings
Each a link in the chain of Life

People with bad hearts
Get their tickers checked
People with good hearts
Get their thinkers checked
:)

We are South Africans
   We live in a real live circus

The Clowns run around acting serious
   just one look at them walking proud
      and the World laughs out loud

The Chimpanzees run amok
   Their handlers ail of Culture shock

Chasing Trapeze artists round the ring
   Men on stilts are finally suffering

The Lions have sold their claws and roars
   For a few extra child subsidy encores

The Tigers crouch in fearful shame
   The latest casualties in the Blame Game

And the crowd just stares on dazzled
   As everything fails, likely embezzled...

I love to create
Imagining a world
I have all to myself
A beautiful planet
I'd be free to roam
Lucious meadows
Bustling with life
Rolling hills framing
Magical sunsets
A world uncorrupted
Free from heartache
But the problem with
Creating something
So stunningly beautiful
Is that it eventually
Becomes extremely hard
To return to the real world
So as each day passes me by
I retreat deeper and deeper
Into this unreal cocoon

Brains out
   wired wrong
Inclined to see the dark
     And shadows
       But
   We forget
That we only see shadows
     because the sun was shining
And we only know sweet joy
   Because we tasted
     Bitter pain

When you spend idyllic hours
   Taking bits of this
   And pieces of that
Moulding them into a new whole
You also mix in a piece of your soul
So when you send it out into the world
   Whether for admiration
   Or a need to tempt fate
That little bit of you remains out there
A little reminder of the spark to create

We are living in a "it's someone else's problem" culture these days.
Just how can we escape?

How down is down?
   Below the grass?
Below the soil and rocks?
   Below Earth's crust?

The deeper you go in
   The more you reach in
The closer you get to the centre
   What's down about a centre?

Tis the heart that beats in time
   Tis the heat that fires the crust
Tis the spin that moves the world
   Tis the soul of the earth alive

But below my soul
   Is no centre pole
Where the centre should be
   Is a gaping hole

He has slain the Dragon
It lies unmoving before him
The light slowly fading from its emerald eyes

Draped over his weary shoulders
Is the dragon's fiery tongue
Its blistering stranglehold easing as it dies

Dragon blood of the purest blue
Splattered across his scorched chest
His valiant heart still beating at the speed of light

Alongside his sword and scabbard
His heavy shield lies shattered
caught by a single deadly dragontail swipe

Patches of its skin and thorny scales
Have covered his battered arms with scars
A forever present reminder of this epic night

He bows his head in solemn regret
To be standing here victorious
He had to take this magnificent life

A teardrop
     escapes
slowly meandering
  down the ***** of
her tear-soaked face

A sigh
     barely audible
hanging on her lips
  gets swept away by
a cold autumn wind

A stray
     lock of hair
dangling unnoticed
  as her eyes focus
beyond the horizon

A fist
     Unclenching
hangs by her side
  as anger fades and
resilience takes root

I have this continuous feeling
   that my existence
      needs to be validated...
That I need to justify
   being here at all
      I exist
   therefore I am
      I am
   therefore I exist
      But
   do I really
      Exist
         at all?

Dark eyes that peer out in wonder,
   exploring and discovering
      the new world around him-
Deep eyes heavy with silent knowledge
   of a world beyond ours,
      yet to be forgotten.

Shimmering eyes flooded
   with unconditional love
      of the purest kind,
untainted by this bitter life
   and with unwavering trust
      that he is loved back.

Tens of millions
   Of invisible strings
      Hold the world together

As strong as flowing water
   As flexible as the will to live
      As inevitable as time passing

Get hold of one and pull
   And the vibration will echo
      Far beyond the here and now

so fragile
     like glass
destined to shatter
     but when the sun catches her eye
nothing else matters

we live in a cruel cruel world
and yet we wake up every morning
expecting the world to change
expecting today to be different
expecting today to be the day
that everything goes our way
we trudge through the day
with hope tucked in our pocket
and each night we take it out
shake it out
and put it away lovingly
in that pocket close to our heart
hoping tomorrow will be that day...

Eyes blinded by sight
   Hands numbed by feeling
Smell suffocated by senses
   Heart crushed by blood

Eyes blinded by sight
   Hands numbed by feeling
Smell suffocated by senses
   Heart crushed by blood
Humanity shrouded by shadow
   Love drowned by greed
Dreams displaced by reality
   Wisdom replaced by savvy
Sunlight blocked by pollution 
   Trees reduced by buildings
Time accelerated by technology 
   Souls infected by emptiness
Earth overrun by humans

Finding inner peace
   is like
Searching for a cat
   in a
      Hurricane

shh
hushed
a breath held
for a brief second
an echo of a heartbeat
as trepidation creeps inside
almost silently tiptoeing in
taking root in tiny cracks
settling like grey mist
upon a weary soul
seeking shelter
breath held
hushed
shh

an idea is a seed
        that grows when nurtured
      but does not die when neglected
    living on
  beyond those who conceived it
beyond those who denied its existence
  beyond those that contemplated its demise
    beyond those that wished to control it
      surfacing time
        and time
          again

If only
   We could close our eyes
And click a switch
   And wake up in another world

A world where happiness is the only currency
   And hope is as abundant as the air we breathe

A world where a good word is precious as gold
   And a smile is worth a thousand words

A world without senseless suffering
   Where life is a precious commodity
      And all life is in sync

Obviously
   A world far
      Far away
         From this one

But dreams are dreams
   And wishes are wishes
      So I'll just let them be

I'll close my eyes
   just one more time
And click the switch
   And one day there I'll be...

The morning alarm has rung
     But getting up is getting old
The sun is shining outside
     But my coffee cup is cold

What comes to mind is a whip
     To chase me outa bed
Either I get up and get going
     Or lie around like lead

And yet time slowly creeps by
    And I'm still cuddled in this cocoon
Waiting wondering anticipating
     For someone to pop this inertia baloon

Life is full of twists and turns

     Happiness / Sadness
          Anger / Joy  
      Passion / Indifference
           Love / Hate

Opposites at first glance,
     each necessary in their own time,
    each with a purpose.

Like the swing of a pendulum,
     each tick-tock is inevitable,
each turn in the road purposeful,
     showing us something
         we need to learn from.

If we do not learn,
     it passes us by,
          and it will pass us by again,
     and again,
          and again,
until we learn the lesson
     life intends us to learn,
          then it will move on.

Tick-tock, tick-tock,
     swing left, swing right,
higher, lower,
    until we reach equilibrium,
then tick-tock,
     tick-tock
           all over again.

Live, learn, love...
     Live, learn, love...
          LIVE, LEARN, LOVE!

Balance is the Key.
     And Love!
     And Life!

And to take each day as it arrives
     and make the most of each opportunity,
each smile, glower, crisis and peace in its stride,
     and at the end of the day
          to be able to say:
I have LIVED this day!

Relaxing to the core

Watching the blanket of stars
   decorating the sky above me

Smelling the soft scent of plants
   as the wind caresses my face

Listening to chirping crickets
   competing in the darkness

Tasting the absolute nostalgia
   so palpable on the night air

Feeling the powerful silence
   of the earth beneath me

And of course giving in return
   as mosquitoes join my therapy

Needing space, I have to say
   Just a little space today
Just enough space so I can breathe freely
   Without letting go completely
Space to contemplate existence
   Without too much interference
Just enough space to find myself
   Without disturbing the dust on the shelf
Space to push a little at the world out there
   Without it pushing back everywhere

Normality
   is a myth
      something
   they tell
you to
keep
   you
      in
         line

One day at a time
   One foot in front of the other
      One Heart
   One Head
One Soul
Sometimes pulling in different directions
   But always making us whole

How do you know that what you have written is original if you haven't read all there is to read out there?

Once you've read all there is to read out there, how can you possibly write anything original ever again?

At a certain stage
in your bustling life

Where you come from
Becomes less important

And getting out of here
Is always on your mind

How much is too much?
When is too much ever enough?
Ever been too paranoid
About too much paranoia?

Ever thought about it?
   You being an actual parasite
In that body you think is yours?

We live our lives
   Ignoring the multitude
Of protestations
   From our bodies
While we flood them
   With too much of our vices

Sugar
   Alcohol
      Nicotine
   Food
Stress
   Time

Living for the day, today
   Putting off thinking about it
To tomorrow
   or the next
Or never
   Until its too late

How do you know
   You are not
An Uninvited Guest?

   A Pest
A parasite?

My soul lies prone
Trapped under
The weight
Of the world
Squashed
Pressed flat
Against
The ground
Lifting it
Requires
More energy
Than I have
So I will myself
To accept the
View of the clouds
Passing me by
From this
Flat
Flat
Perspective

From my point of view
   I am always right
From your point of view
   I am totally wrong
From his point of view
   I am out of my mind
From her point of view
   what I do is so alien
From their point of view
   I mean absolutely nothing
Perspective is ever changing
   But always needs a key

Tatters of rainbow slivers
fluttering in the wind
the colours diluted
the light faded
the dream
broken
up

Pitter
  Patter
Ever thought of the life of a raindrop
  Flying through the atmosphere
Such an idyllic trip
  Then Splat!

Pitter
  Patter
Ever thought of the life of a raindrop
  Flying through the atmosphere 
Such an idyllic trip
  Then Splat!

Shhh
   Shhhhh
But that's not the end of the story
   Filtering through rocks and sand
An inevitable journey
   Then Splash!

Swishing
   Swashing
Travelling in underground caverns
   Darkness slowly ebbing
Light sneaking in
   Then Flash!

Trickle
   Trickle
Rivulets become streams become rivers
   And all the while flowing to the ocean
A delightful destination
   Then Ouch!

Whisper
   Whimper
Old Sol beams down his scorching rays
   Drawing water vapours into his embrace
Rising, grouping, clouding
   Then . . .

From the
   very first
      moment
   we take our
very first
   breath
      in
   this
life
   we
      start
         to
            die

Death
   is a part of life
Death
   is inevitable
      but
run run run
   is all we do
      run run run
   all the way
      run
         run
            run
               away

The silence was deafening
Without you lying beside me
I lay with a pillow over my head
Blocking echoes of the silence
But it infiltrated even my dreams