Tomorrow
we all say
there's no end to tomorrows

after all
we have time
so what's not done today
is carried forward
to the next day

it's work-in-progress
the final product
will come out somehow
wait until tomorrow

so convenient a word
tomorrow

we'll be still around
what then is the rush and hurry?
the sky won't fall off
we still have a job
we'll drink beer
and watch TV
have fun
let tomorrow
take care of itself

don't take a swipe
on tomorrow
it could mean
too many a sorrow

so have a thought
even a tiny one
there are not too many tomorrows
every past day
is a minus on the spectrum of time

think
what guarantee is there
you would rise to see
the sun tomorrow?

They call me 'an idiot'
I stammer and with words I struggle
I am slow and have a an 'IQ so very low'
People to me are a puzzle.

They use strange words
My condition is 'congenital'
Others go even further
I suffer from a 'brain deficit'--'a disorder neurological'

But I can keep a job
Always hardworking and punctual
I dress neatly, know how to take the bus
My boss said 'Peter is not brilliant but reliable'

Dad minds the farm, mum takes care
Of my little brother Tom and Tanya my tiny sister
I give my parents half my monthly salary
So that my siblings will have a good education and further

Their studies perhaps in uni
There is always joy and warmth in the family
We share, we laugh, we sing and make merry
Despite what others say--I am happy, truly blessed and happy.

MIND

No science can unravel
the mystery of mind
brain-bred alone?
matter first
next--the insubstantial-
the fluidity of thinking that follows?
the chicken first
then the egg kind of reasoning?

but mind is infinite
and has no boundaries-
it can't be measured
or calibrated
MRI is mechanistic
and neurology is but a crude tool
they probe the physicality
but never touch the inner core
which cannot be detected or mapped
and all psychiatry is but guess-work
will o'-the-wisp and
the fancy of the shrink
who is hopelessly inadequate
and an object of pity
(doctor, heal thyself first!)

where  is the birth-place
of thought?

science is inferior to nature
what is unknowable far exceeds
the bounds of the known
mind--the eternal enigma

how is genius born?
how is the unspeakable articulated
through poetry, music and art?
how does the mind create such beauty
as to be beyond the bounds of human understanding
and experience? Isn't it then a mystery within mysteries
and makes reason mute and causes science to weep?

how does beauty so sublime arise
from the non-physical
which knows not its own abode?

the brain
is not the mind
and the mind is not the brain

which is superior then?
that which is beyond
the narrow straits of science
counts for infinitely more

Isn't every day the same then
the slow-grinding hours at work in the city
waiting for the clock to  tick faster
the tedium, ennui and feelings close to misery?

how dreadful to get up in the early hours
(this winter is beyond endurance)
breakfast eaten in a hurry
to catch the 6-elevens

half-asleep in the train
(fearful to miss the stop--drowsy)
doleful and tired faces all around
(isn't everyone unhappy?)

irascible boss
stingy as hell
the office doesn't have enough heating
but none is brave enough to tell

lest he gets the flick
(this is recession-time, jobs are hard to come by)
no salary increase or annual bonus
all that you can do is to suffer in silence and sigh

long hours, no thanks from Mr Glum
(none dares take sick-leave)
Paul took two days and was shown the door
working conditions here are beyond belief.

week-ends---the same humdrum
too many beers and betting at the race
( Nancy threatens divorce---my losing spell)
my life is a dreadful failure---I am a total disgrace

return home at midnight after too much *****
broke, worry sick, can't sleep---how to survive
the next week?--Sammy lends money at 10% a week
I depend on him (he's a good friend) to stay alive.

You my friend told me the other day
'  Eh, mate--you have lost weight and look unwell'
  you John my dear friend are dead-right
   my life is worse than hell!

Life is but a view-point
yours and yours alone
sacred unto yourself
your inalienable right
your innermost sanctum
privy to yourself and none else

life is your raw material
which you shape and mould
in whatever way you want
into what your dreams dictate
the world has no say
nor have the right to know

with loyal, patient and faithful hands
you work
you give all you have
to this pursuit
of love, beauty and duty
you make life become
part of yourself
it begins to understand
and learns to speak your language

you and your life
then fuse into one complete whole-
one view-point
as immortal as time

1

A glowworm flickers
like a tiny star on high
' Look, mum, look there, mum'

2   Last light of sunset
     old fisherman sets for home
     he wears a broad smile
3

Balloons in the sky
it's a public holiday
kids lick their ice-cream

4

Serene is the night
soft breezes drift in the air
roses droop in sleep

5

Over-grown grassland
wild yellow flowers flourish
birds fly here to rest

SOMEWHERE RIVER

Somewhere River
winding through time’s corridor
silent chronicler
of the heart of man and its sacred inner core

sentinel of history
record-keeper
of life's mystery
it forgets never

night and day
its waters meander
through every remote bend near or far away
further and yet further

can you hear its song so tender
when the night is hushed asleep
when the tired moon longs for slumber
when the stars in deepest silence  weep?

We are all like Somewhere River
we exist somewhere –each a traveller
through time,  a lonely unknown wanderer
this is our life-story—what else should we remember?

If you come to Australia
Be sure not to wear some flowers in your hair
Aussies are down-to-earth and not poetical people
For floral beauty they don't really care

If you do come to Australia
The qualification you must have is drinking beer
Everyone in the pub (especially young pretty Aussie women)
Will hug you till you weep--otherwise, please don't come here!

'ENTRY' --I go in
'EXIT--' I get out
'VERBOTEN' I stay away
  These three words ring so strong and loud

Should I stay ?
But what's this all about?
Should I get away?
Can't decide--due to my doubt

VERBOTEN
Forbidden
I don't bother to argue
Prudence--a rule that's golden

When to get out or stay in I'd know
If I do have wisdom enough
Living life is not as easy as changing your clothes
The journey is long, lonely, burdensome and unrelentingly tough