"How long
have these bollards
been here?"
"About twenty years"

"Mirror, mirror on the wall,
who is the fairest of them all?"

Look at her skin so pale and lovely,
Her fine gold hair in ringlets twirled,

But see - she is cycling as hard as she's able
on an exercise bike, as fast as she can,
the sweat fairly spilling
down onto the floor.

Her aim, to fit into that tiny bikini
and win the Miss Nowhere's imaginary crown.

Was it worth it? Who's telling?
and what was the score?

Heartless hunters
Garden defilers
Enslaving humans
With fur and purr

Snow
source of so much poetry
cancels
poetry group meeting

Wild raspberries
Glow richly red
in the hedgerow
Taste wonderful

Op Shop
Charity shop
Best stop
for Lost And Found

Little striped buzzers
keep interrupting
when I'm trying
to concentrate

The weather forecast for today
said mist would later clear away
and afternoon be bright.
So far the earth is sombre, drear,
no hint of sunshine to appear
before again it's night.
The tapestry of twigs and branches
when the breeze arises, dances
stitched across the sky.
I remember when the green
sleek new leaves could well be seen
by any passer-by.
The birds still sing although no rays
of sunshine cheer their wintry days.
They're pairing up in time
by end of January's freezing weight
to reach mid-February's sacred date,
that of Saint Valentine.

Five-Word competition
challenges poets
to include each one
meaningfully

The workman came,
said what he would do
and vanished

Splinters of plastic
pierce outer skin of the year
we labour to save

Sun comes out
It's hot
Sun goes in
It's not

I plan to do so much
and accomplish so little

Friends took me to the superstore
of clothing jewelry and more
and said "Look 'round and take your pick"
I said: "You'll think me very thick
but how can I decide to buy
when racks of clothes urge me to try?
There's too much choice, I'm overcome
Decision made- Please take me home"

visitor
lovely
go places
share food
wave goodbye
sit down

Climb any mountain
Enjoy the space
the fair views
in every direction

Wait a while
savour the pleasure
You've started a trend
Everyone wants to do it

"Don't burst blood vessels"
says my enigmatic friend
"Stay cool, man, stay cool"

As if we weren’t worried
about plastic already, this year
produced mountains of medical splinters
and labourers’ protective disposable outers

I'm wending my way
to the poetry group
trying to frame
from alphabet soup
some rhythmic offering
by way of a change
from shame-faced admittance
"I've nothing"- how strange!
But just as I join them
with something to say

They're doing Haiku

To the untrained eye
most modern art -
'modern'  meaning anything
this century or less -
though luminously painted
remains mysterious
and at times a shock,
a shock so great
as to render one speechless,
minus even a syllable,
on the gallery's contents

Though a friend of mine
a respected artist
was heard to say
as she left the exhibition
"scrambled egg, scrambled egg"

Smiling assistants
with my luggage
worth being called
'The old lady?

It's poetry day
and I've  nothing to say
How come?

Blue is beautiful
on bluebells and sky
not on moods

You can see the headlines
"Bronze superstar switches beaches"
from cloudy Britain
to hot sunny Tropez
Everything's news to someone

I haven't
a particle of poetry
in me
Nothing rhymes

Rivers and hills pass
I doze
Wake up in Scotland

With better
Flower Show mapping
I'd have seen
more flowers

Heavy rain
lets you know
which of your shoes
leak

Herdwicks
look at you kindly
Knowing
you can't help it

Don't let the worry
of giving and preparing
wipe out the wonder

No place is a desert
There is life
somewhere
everywhere

Five syllables (short)
Seven syllables (longer)
and five more to end

So much stuff
he uses a small paintbrush
To dust

Anything?
What do you mean
by anything?
Literally, any thing?

As someone approached,
the pigeon I was watching
skeedaddled quickly

Assignment-'Write a sonnet'
I did look up the definition ...

The stump of the tree
cut down by thieves trespassing
glows pain day and night

'People are funny'
Good thing!
Imagine
If they were not

The loose sort
is disappearing
It can't be used
online

Scottish Country Dancing
Poetry in motion
until you get
tangled

"The length of a lyric"
the writer explained
over a cup
of what looked like tea
"depends on eroding
a concept held dearly
down to its heartwood
to let it sing free"

It everyone crunches
together
nobody notices
how loud
you are

Wherever I go
he's there with his walking frame
smiling cheerfully

In blink of an eye
the mental storm subtly changes,
its clustered worries relaxed, calmed.
A circumference of peace prevails

Turrets and towers rise
Castle broods
History hugs my heels

If you're (gasp)
waistband
doesn't (ooh)
fasten
wear something else

"I do tree root climbing"
"I fell from a hedge"

Space
Comfort
Cheerful atmosphere
Beautiful surroundings
assist peace of mind

A poetry guru named Sean
Said 'Limericks just make me yawn.
The rhyming is flat,
the meter's old hat,
free verse is my thing, not old corn.'

Good voice
but I'd like
to have heard some words