"Dear John
By the time you read these lines,
I will be gone."

The rocking chair,
The only piece of furniture
Remaining

"Dear John
By missing the deadline for your
Dissertation
The school will not have you
returning."

The books are boxed

The rocking chair rocks on
With every breath
Taken.

You don't have to die
To have lives wilt and cry.
Looking around through curious eyes
Nothing which was remains.

"Dear John
Your lease has expired
You will be moving on."

The rocking chair
Rocks on.

The twilight seeps in through
Windows without curtains.

The door opens
A moment of melancholy
The door closes

The rocking chair without him there
Becomes still
In the twilight air.

We laid there on the firing line
He was black and I was white
But the random bullet chooses not the colour of your skin
No sharp crack like you hear in films
Just a dull thud
No heroes death for that young man
No
Blood and **** and gasping for air
But there wasn't the time to help
Because the next one was aimed at me
****** stained pants while the screams went on
But eventually he died
Heroes!!! Well of course for we had been trained
But how do you tell a nineteen year not to be afraid?
PTSD don't be ******* stupid
There's no such thing so get your ******* **** out there
And do it all over again
But he died with no dignity
"So, he was a soldier, it was his ******* job"
"It's your ******* job so don't argue"
But the scars imprinted on your brain remain
Your never going to be the same person again
The suicide rate among ex service personel is at an all time high
Yes, even with the counselling
But back then there was no counselling
So the bottle became my best friend
That morning after your accident I followed the ambulance
Out of my head will worry
Out of my head with *****
And I did that for you
A perfect father! Probably not
I wanted the best I could do for you
But always the nightmares were in between us
A lot of water has passed under the bridge since then James
But you are and always will be my son
And I love you

Lead me to the sun ...
Where the Crimson mist lies

Let your children grow cold
Cold and hard as stone
Let your hot tears never fall on their skin
Let them go to the ground
Alone and without you
May your sorrow and grief
Never see them again
Never give the last goodbyes
May you be given as you have given
Not a measure more
Nor a measure less
May grief and misfortune
Follow you for what you have done
For you have forsaken a mothers love
And denied her
Her dead son

within the beating
there were smaller
beatings  

-

delirium, the haunted sandbox

-

in his, my brother could taste the rib of a mosquito

in mine, I could taste
my voice

-

them kids had time to fetch

other kids
there was

no hell

I notice these things,
the way that she smiles as she sings
the ***** of her *******
it's best when she notices me
noticing her,
I am not one to stare, but I do
I can see through walls or so
she says, but it
pays to be attentive and
I give her attention
not that this gives me kudos
she was adamant about this.
I am the boss she allows me to be,
but we all now the truth and who wears
the trousers in this family.

Dear October,
Bathing me in a full moon
Supersized and the colour of
McDonald's cheese.

Bright through the thick curtains
Of my bedroom, where I rest in
Sober solitude.
A dim red, even through heavy

Eyelids.
Dear October, breathe your faintly
Frosted scents through my open
Window, leave my stellar

Night light on.
I need no fingertips caressing my
Face goodnight.
I have friends like little planets.