People can let you know
The moment they feel unwell or sick
The main event is sat before table
never always as clear with those that cannot speak to us to ask for help.
The event may be passed over like a paper towel
The upright life has another facet, gesture and whisper, but not recognised at once
The care of our beloved pets exceeds logic but revolves around the silence, How can we know when its time, time to react to our thoughts and make action
If only we might communicate, through precious literature, knowledge or hunch. Our pets serve us with their love, without demand. At no time are they lookinģ for us to suit their lives, yet we do it anyway. We know, or believe we know their inner- most desires.
The sad events of any loving entity make leaving the earth a soulful, heart-breaking time.
Our love reciprocal gives us a reason to worry beyond reason almost before a predicted outcome
Then closing their eyes for the last time need not be as sad but merely a transition or gateway to the Summerlands. Loving us as they do it is never final, but significant only in a physical state
Their love and spirit for us lives forever. Returning to the stars in the sky, Lily shines on her way to eternity knowing her life was precious and fulfilling in leaving pawprints in our hearts and to stardust fom whence she came.

Autumnal leaves have fallen
The onset of winter declared
Seasons changing do not destroy but allow nature to rest.
Throughout the years
We see and feel the early morning dew on our bare  toes
The weak spring sun through the trees
Reminds us of Springs past
Memories of Easter time, lighter evenings and blossom as the trees awake after winter slumber.
Memories are precious
evoking feelings of places, incidents, loved ones.
Summer, a time of warm long days
Eating outside and holidays to special places.
Remembering the seasons has personal moments embedded in our psyche
People are often regarded as a special Summer soul, Happy to make others cheerful, relaxed and content.
It is of course terribly difficult to allow these special folk to move to the Summerlands. We know no reason why they might cross the border but respect the fact that the circle of the seasons applies to us too. Allowing future life to develop, grow and enjoy this beautiful planet we, like the plants have a 'season".
Give a thought for the sunshine that bathed them, the ice and snow that retained them and the hundreds of days in-between where they spread their love over us and we them.

The blue, blue eyes peer toward you
Never again a conscious decision
To stay over, can be taken lightly
Your life is changed
Responsibility reverbs around your brain
A parent, can I be?
The cot and tiny clothes
Confirm a positive

No child is the same and your text book planning
Is already looking like a farce
Taking the governments view

Silver birch and holly tree
Along the path I walk
Woodland curtain
Bringing cool elements to mind

Squelchy footprints and ice cold wind
Cutting through the trees
Silence of the woods brings peace
Except for the chatter of the crows

I see noone but imagine souls
Of long-gone folk not far away
Hiding, hiding
I quicken my step, yet the paths
Incline keeps my breathing steady but deep

My fingers start to numb in my gloves
A typical feeling as the temperature
Hits just above freezing

I shiver but maintain my step
Removing my gloves
Thrusting my hands
Deep into my pockets,

The light is failing now
Winter solstice only a week away
I feel alone yet strangely
The wood seems full of people.

My imagination running wild.
Turning back as the path ends I realise
How the sunlight has gone
Twilight wraps its grey fingers around me.

Two small boys played on the waste ground
It was midsummer and the grass was in its golden glory
Dry and straw like they werd
Catching grasshoppers in the long grass
The older boy, a confident red hairded bespectacled lad
Gave advice to the younger one, 'keep your hands cupped, you'll catch one then'
The hot  the underlying concrete
The Bombies was a a patch of grass and the remains of buildings still uncleared after the second world war.
'Lets get home now' the red head suggested as they wandered still laughing back to his house not 50 metres away  down the hill.
Summer holidays spent together on the Bombies or playing cricket

Are you the type of person
Preferring to be under a roof
Or wandering in the garden
Or galloping out on the hoof

Are you desperate to escape
To the sunshine
The beach or leafy glade
Or sitting on the sofa
Drinking whisky and lemonade

Do you love to look out the window
But pleased to be warm inside
When others are walking in wellies
And you are safe in the dry

Is your dream to have a posh bedroom
A shower and toilet ensuite
Or prefer to be on a mountain
With long grass round your feet

Is your pleasure the feel of the spray
When waves break on the rocks
Or the smell of bread in the oven
As you stand in your joggers and socks

Do you like to get up in the morning
And put on your running kit
Escape to the footpaths or roadways
Or sit on the sofa and knit

I expect the thought of a bike ride
Would not be everyone's thing
When theres chance to go to the bathroom
To stand in the shower and sing

The difference from indoor to outdoor
Shows each of us as unique
In the kitchen or in the garden
In the chair or up the creek

Some of us like to be walking
Or leaping over a gate
The wind and the rain don't deter us
Arriving home quite late

While some prefer the safety
Of the rooms within the house
Things in the warmth of the homestead
Hiding away like a mouse.

In truth the split isn't easy
From indoor to outdoor you see
The weather decides for it mostly
Unless you are a ***** like me!

Salty spray ever dripping, the months of winter merge
Black tarmac usually so robust,
Pressured by evil winds of middle earth
Boring similarity where days glide by
Watched with pale faces in despair
Wet weather conditions fail the promise of new life
Flooding events, desperate for relief wash over
Where bright, white snow might be welcome
Yet, still the greasy mud clogs our footpaths
Making any sort of walking a physical impracticality
The greyness clouding our windows
Encourages little incentive to explore outside
Spring flowers resting within their bud in the cold earth
Reluctant and selfish to break through sodden mud
Before they come and surprise us with welcome colour
Giving respite within this desperate monochrome landscape.

My long-term friend keeps faith
The binding elements rooted in school days
Mean our understanding goes deeply into the crust
Of this beautiful earth.
Distance is far but nearer am I to him
Than my neighbour who makes no time to chat
She creates bad feeling and thinks not of simple humanity
My friend has soul and we measure our feelings with
Similar units, ounces of this and feet of that
The memories of which link us to transitional events today
I can remember us as boys
Laughing as drains with no intention
To stop to listen to others.

The reality of moving creeps over
Like a moorland mist
It promises a wonderful day at the end
But now fogs our vision and our thoughts
Planning is futile as the rescue party
Has other ideas, on time and importance
Each footstep feels heavy.
The light is dim and those guiding
Are studying a different map.
Destination certain but not the route
The days tick by and mist clears in places then comes down far worse than before
The energy travelling seems harder
As the hidden gateways have lost keys
To unpick is pointless and puzzling
If you're lucky your resolve pays off as the moorland's beauty is revealed on the horizon.
Suddenly your heart is lifted as the final mile is in sight. Then you twist your ankle and rest is required.
The journey amongst the cruel mist is challenging as the cold clammy fingers try to strangle you.
Reaching the end is filled with hurdles as the time is inflicted upon you. Carrying your load is hardest as the fine weather reverts to cloud and rain.
Shelter is at last with you but the stairway up is steep and winding.

Strength to our ancestors
In every way may seem unreasonable
The withering of latter day warriors
Complete in the window of activity
Which makes our understanding easier
Elements of era change our perception
Of great people as each may tune into
Different concepts
Similar doorways have lessened
The framing of powerful men,
In essence great lives are never discovered
Until latter days
When similar notions are reflected
In what we remember.
Never will we truly understand
But can only imagine how these souls
Suffered and lived within their time
Joyous and stressful, delirious or tortured
Great lives will have travelled them all.

Moorland skies and breaking dawn clouds,
forcing the weak sunlight through the barren trees.
Crows with no particular places dart from one copse to the other.
Flying above your head, tearing the morning skies into shreds.
Elusive mists on the undulating lanscapes give peeks of field stubble or dark  grass.
Nearer, the feel of the five bar gate
Is damp and slimy with the dew,
The rough wood barely discernable
Until the warmth of your hand gives up enough heat to release its underlying texture.
To the right the west seems still asleep,
Unaware of the fingers of the sun's rays inching closer.
Sliding through gateways,
Over ponds and into unexpected windows.
To the east its almost day,
Cool yellow light weaving it's way through or past the trees,
Hedges, odd building and rests at your feet.
Bowed in reverence as if to hand you this day on a platter saying, '
'This day is my gift to you, enjoy.'

Feeling for someone is a burden
A burden that becomes you
It delivers a soulful journey whilst
Both are having connected visions

My desired heart has been fulfilled
No longer is it left along with the washing
It accompanies me as does my love, with
The certainty of tomorrow

Claiming my happiness seems unnecessary
like the sunrise it lives inside us
It becomes our energy
Our natural 'go to' emotion

The journey is green and gold
With silver amulets and chains of memories
slung around our shoulders
Like badges of office

The time of year has connotations
with the longevity of our love
Memories of breathing out visual steam
Or camping in the cool morning air

The emotion is as strong
It lives as we do with tempered faith
Deeper knowledge
And faith in ourselves to keep it right

Clever minds that stretch
The many elements which live as our backdrop
Too often everyday is spoiled
By unnecessary people, gathering ammunition
For climbing invisible platforms of command
These are cast aside by simple smiles and welcomes
And it was.
Even if the task was invisible to me at first
My soul felt at home amongst these new work mates
My responsible position was underwritten
Given gravitas and a freedom to which I wasn't quite used

The time was charged with familiar but different
It was fraught but strangely healthier in paradox
The honest fight was taken with gestures of family proportion
Success had waned but the unity of 'knowing' was the strength
That continued to support that Company
In spite of the turmoil my personal facets were given air
To run and to adjust, to temper and to manage
Poor communication was completely disastrous
The confusion of three currencies
And the balance of understanding left us guessing
Never mind agreement or translation

Through all this, looking back my heart is lifted
Not by the freedom or the ability to achieve ...mostly,
It is the strength from our leader,
That calm, silver haired man
When many were distraught you kept us going
And fed us with hope and built our confidence,
Not always with the obvious
But gave us the ability to win through by believing ,
Believing in us and building back our motivation and teasing out
The raw infrastructure of our true capabilities
Never before has anyone, apart from my Mother
Believed in me as you did. To tackle the toughest of tasks
Anything that the industry, the public or our customers
Could throw at us, we dealt with it.
Sadly you could do nothing at the final demise but take the role
Of a father giving news of an aged relative sadly moved by
A force greater than yourself
I know had you the influence, the power and the funding............

You were always more than a boss Chris
Your transparent enthusiasm raised our spirits
And in times of worry I hope we lifted yours too.
I think of you often, thank you for being a friend
After we were no longer professionally connected.
I see your generous smile and your warm handshake
I can hear your laugh now
It's always a treat to catch up over a beer.
I now find you in my phone, in my photographs
But mostly in my heart for being a great bloke
You taught me so much.

Speak soon, with love, Max

Solstice midsummer is famous for revelry around the stones
The sacred stones on Salisbury plain
Laid as monuments by our ancestral people
The henge of countless moons and previous seasonal
wheel turns stands steadfast
Silently they hold the history we crave to unravel
The years of news, turmoil and worship
The rising and setting of our life-giving sun
The bitter cold winters, likewise winter solstice
Where few find solace holding their offerings
Or enjoying the feeble warmth from a far away star

The nature of Stonehenge carries the enigma
Which makes it special, mysterious and commands
Respect, awe and love
I believe like it's close neighbour Avebury
The Henge will remain enigmatic
A giant in the soil of the flat plains
Certain to give us the love it once received from Druidic
Peoples laying down their hopes and their wishes
Spending time absorbing, making and mending
Rekindling the connections around themselves
With the earth, through this massive conduit
The sacred stones everywhere hold their story
Close to their chest, the mirrored knowledge
That embraced the folk that built the magickal elements
Will be there for ever
Claiming the fascination of the masses but the respect
Of few that understand the real Stonehenge

Special is a word I was unaquainted with
It is not usually in my vocabulary
I used different words
Until I met my love

She must be the epitome of that word
The perfect match
In fact the only word that describes her
Not really, but it suits how she is to me

Fairy shoes on polished floors
Green light glowing in the waxy surface
Making glorious rings of transmitted light
Rainbows breaking up as the windows agree to let in

The dancing cherries of summer days.
Curling shadows cast from pretty arms
Made round as sleep endured
After busy day body resides in the comfortable reception

Sinking as weight increases as you let go
Relaxing muscles, duvet covers hold fast the shape of rest?
Yes rest is altered as time moves on.
No more feast of food or discussion  just peaceful slumber

Special she is as special she does
Counting simple things that endear me
Or humming a familiar tune
Checking the weather or slipping her hand in mine

She doesn't need to be extraordinary to be special
No flags or drum rolls
No letters of distinction or accolades of merit
She is special by just being mine.

Can this be the time once more
Of utter giving up of our control
The simple folliwing of commercial madness
Our desire for the day when food and wine
Have to be gathered about us like the defences of yore
Headlong we run from mid-summer until
We are exhausted in body, spirit or credit
The desperate worry of what to buy whom
Or when to order the especially fattened bird for your table
The ridiculous overspending on presents
When time could be the finest present you could give

Yule tide is a special period for Druids and all pagans alike,
The wonder of simplicity of reflection of our past year
The elements of sleep as mother earth regenerates herself
Resting often under the warmth of a blanket of snow
Gathering of families and loved ones
Blessings of the solstice as the wheel of the year turns
Once more into the light as the sun begins it's journey
Returning to the northern hemisphere
Our birds and native animals preparing for the winter
Storing their food, digging deep as they look for vitals

Likewise the land is resting,
The soil teems with dormant life, every insect and worm
Every root, form and bulb
Slowing right down as the degrees fall to freezing
The frosty and rime ridden mornings giving the flora
A lift of white dusting and sparkling light reflecting
The weak, beautiful winter sun
Heaves itself onto the low glancing position
Just making it to the tree tops before retiring once more to sleep
Leaving glorious swathes of orange and red
Painting the sky as it falls and rises.

Yule tide comes as all seasons, times and periods
But once a year in our short lives
The earthy sounds, the images and emotion
The smell of the newly fallen snow and woodsmoke
The foraging birds and squirrels
The warbling and tuneful song of the blackbird
And the tut tut of Mr Robin resplendent in his
Bright red waistcoat bobbing around in the crisp frost
Our lifetime of Yules is a wonder to enjoy,
I know as I look from my window where my heart is
As the distant tree bare in it's winter shroud speaks
To me as a friend and anchor within this beautiful planet.

Good, we've seen a view that excites us
But is that all you can say?
Where is the heartfelt imagery of your soul?
The faint hearted expression of love or dislike, mistrust or disbelief?
Too much is given over to vision
Although our eyes give birth to many items of beauty
The soulful messages dragged from our hearts
Give a clearer and deeper impression.
Take my painting here of her
Is that not her character, her look or demeanour
But the slant that I made with each tiny line

Take your inspiration and drive it
In every direction
Don't leave your image to anyone else
Do not be frightened to pour out your heart
Or making mistakes right from the start.
Gather your drawings, your sketches your musings
Develop a painting that truly is yours
Envelop yourself in a creative intention
Art is just that an intended finality
Be strong and try painting for all you are worth
Sink yourself inwards whilst looking outwards
Try not to give into quick fixes or such
Be forceful in mind but let your heart always guide you
You'll become a master with each little touch.

How fitting the autumn leaves fall now
As we sit contemplating the seasons of our lives
Whete even the most confident, ebullient and robust of people
Would consider their mortality
At this juncture in a troubled world

It takes a moment or two, when someone close to us
Puts on their coat and hat, waves good bye
And slips silently from our lives to realise that
The circle of life, of birth and death is a blessing
That we must accept as nature's way.
Hard though it might seem

So should we not be sad now?
Should we not be regretful, tearful nor feel despair
That our loved one has left us for the Summerlands?
Of course we should, it is natural for us
When we love someone we want them near us forever
Regardless of everything.

So as the blanket of leaves surrounds us
Like the trees now, we may feel empty and bare, exposed to
Everyday incidents, bereft and lost in our sadness.
But we need not be.
The ensuing winter is joyously filled with warmth
It is filled with the energy, the good cheer and memories
Of the spring and the summertime of our dear loved one Les
We remember the fun, the laughter the joy he brought to us all
The silly sayings, the actions and the way he did certain things
Any failings he had are not even anything to consider today

His obvious love for all of us will continue, as ours for him
It will live within us because he planted it there
He tended and watered it in the Spring and Summer
So that we can reap the benefit in the harvest
Continue to enjoy his love, his care and his presence
Even now as he returns to stardust from whence we were born

Dad will never leave us. I can feel his spark within me now
He is here in my heart and within yours too.
Take his energy, his joi to vivre
And let his spirit lift you and continue in your life
Then you will not feel so sad nor will you feel cheated
But thankful  you were part of his life
And he was part of yours
He was a special man, we must celebrate his life
As I know he would celebrate with his heart and soul
Through every season and every year to come.

Greater than ever
Deeper than most
Feather like feelings
Hold onto my heart
Pleading but softness
Maybe a weakness
Yet not ever changing
Can never be wrong

Eye flitting joy
Depends on our welcome
Silently, silently
Make me your own
Feed me your goodness
Kindle my fire
Its been too long
I've been away
Like a song

Take me within you
Keep me from falling
Away from the warmth
As your love comes forth
Gone are the feelings
Like arms hanging limply
Greater my love
As always for you

Leftover emotion
Footsteps are hollow
Stepping on pavements
Where I want to be
Looking around me
The nearest and dearest
My future is here
Under this tender roof

Spoiling my soul
With an ounce of emotion
Keep loving me endless
Your smiles are the best
Gather our goodness
Fulfil our forevers
Stand by each other
Cast our eyes to the sun.

Max Hale

Sometimes the expectations of a journey
Can be foreboding
Even dreadful
Does that make it a surprise
When enjoyment arrives?
Perhaps all aspects of life are similar
But that doesn't help when as a natural optimist
My journey is usually familiar
Whatever my thoughts, the moment is key
The wasted effort of worry and dread
In essence was emotion inevitably led
By confidence or the lack of connected thought
For day to day incidences are often banal
So shouldn't we make each trip much less fraught
By living each minute for all it is worth.

Greatest moments contrived for us
Pleasure warranted but never wholly expected
In as much that time between makes us
Learn again about the people we are
Knowing our foibles and characterful
Voices, carving new ground even softer
Than ever before
If I could truly tell you the love in my heart
For you both it would take a small lifetime
Joyous flights of butterflies inhabit me
As we unravel the life before us
Stories of silliness or episodes of mundane deliverance
No matter what everything is a casket of treasure
Nothing is pedestrian or unnecessary
Imagining lives as our heads discover again
The minutiae of the days and nights
Thank you for making it special
For continuing to be the tiny girl I have loved
Since I held you in that little orange blanket.
Thank you for being the man that cares
The man that supports and loves the daughter
Who has given me so much.

Fraying portraits of empty souls
Give menacing insight through cold staring eyes
Smoothing skin tones are left
When painters discover
The life in you
Compare the fraught days of flightless birds
making their paradise equal
With men who stalk their ways
In earnest and determined manner
Silently they ensure the vision portrayed
Has no more mileage. But fresh eyes
Must be used to stop contamination
From one to another
Paint and ignore why plenty seem stiff
Even parched from lack of considered input
Each brushstroke emptying their blood
Of many elements, even quelling their breaths
Simply see and lay on..
Don't make it up or smooth that cheek
Give colour and step
The right to be there and develop it
Under the warmth of your love
For this creature
Demonstrate how features can be strong but hold
The famous creations that grab the essence of joy
The grains of lust and manic musings
Lament those days of bored faces
Rejoice as carnage can be raised from modern living
The edges and the softness of found and lost
Will always win through when artist is determined
To give life in paint.

Windward side stands firm and proud
The sailing ship its sails a-straining
Clever sailors move around
Guiding hull through stormy waters
Masts are bending through the gales

Taking gusts within their shape
Canvas flapping then goes taught
Calmer waters seem so distant
Temper timings never fraught
Faces stung with salty sea spray
Leathered hands holding firm
Sheets are straining, weather raining
Noise of waves is deafening too

Sometimes when the ship is yawing
Pitching, rolling, deck like glass
It's no wonder cleats and blocks
Are creaking, matelots lives are holding fast

The cool domain of fox and geese
Or how they proved to live
The tinted shed was far from done
The staggered lock was loose
Contained in moonlight ere they walked
The geese were faultless there
The ***** fixed her wandering snout
The cool breeze filled her nose
Maintaining position the fox stood fast
Her gaze was stark and still
The errant geese came hoddlng past
Without a gate nor care
Moonlight gathering clouds that passed
Once bright and then not so
Skating by with scarce a look
By gaggle and in pairs
The red predator crouched low
Her nostrils flared as the breath
Eased her silent mouth shut
With gainful stealth her muscle hard body
Demanded freedom from this in-waiting stance
Her piercing eyes strained in the half light
The geese came silent reaching the house
Leaping forward in a trice the vixens sinewy body
Made speed through the grass
The white geese blissfully unaware
The padding paws thudding hard in the fox's ears
As she neared the final ground
Fluttering flapping wings and frantic noise broke the silence
Honking, snapping, darting, red fur and snapping jaws
The *****'s quest held up
But white feather miasma flared like plume
Beating and writhing, hissing and growling under the moon's
Gentle gaze, the ***** retreats her mission falters
Her tail is blood red but no spoils does she take
Retiring away, she licks her wounds and lies
Panting, casting gazes left and right, breathing heavily
This time beaten, thwarted ....

Each day is blessing let's take that as read
But the emotional turmoil I handle
Makes my life fragmented and sometimes out of control
I'm a strong person
Situations don't phase me
But my feelings can be irrational
Then level, calm and in my grasp
Gaining reaction is the lifeblood
Although my confidence is high
I'm sad when the feedback I was expecting is absent
Is it usual to have standards
Overturned and disregarded by others?
Meditation

Composition of my body that leaves a space
Complete resonance with the world around me
Take me but treat me with care
I have but one long fissure of love
Magnify that with the salt of the earth
The birdsong and the fresh air that is ours
Dont regard me as a static soul
But one that writhes under the actions of being
The truly enacted movements witn intent
This soul is gentle and kind
Matched with a body giving
I expect little but the little must be special
The light in my heart burns deeply for you
It carries the fuel of years
Never ending but eternal.
Feed me with your love, take my soul
Treat it well and give too
The desire for completeness has been sated
The continuing elements that keep us
Float on a sea of tides
Pulled and caressed by the Goddess
She keeps us rounded, calm and serene
Breathe your life giving prana and rejoice
Whilst the light in my heart burns for you

Creative actions are more than enough
To convince me that I am working hard
Blooming flowers prove the point
That nature has a method of showing the world
How amazing we all are.
Dedication from each of us can portray
The effort of clarification from results
Mornings of sunshine days are also great ways
To feel we are on the firmest of footings and cups
Of our enthusiasm drench us as our excitement bubbles
Flesh is weak they say but not so
Eliminate our thought process
Just leave the muscle and the bones of the plan
By any respect the job will be done
Sometimes dwelling on an evaluation is fruitless
Gain some notes in your tune
Misalign your face and just work at it.
Develop your space and live
Don't think too much
Enjoy the life with which we are blessed

The morning awakes with stuttering respect
Night time peace is past.
The new day to me is opportunity
Familiar movements from my love
Sadly recognising that rest is done
At least for the moment
Refusing to wholly awake is one I know.
She feels that more sleep would be...well
Even on days off the climbing out is a considered move
More considered, than move
I love her for her familiar ways
My moderated interaction has taken time to evolve
I understand, we can't all be the same
I love her for what she is and has taught me
Patience and tolerance
Oh how much I've learned about myself

Love is an acceptance of difference
A morphing of two ideals
A belief that neither is right but then...
Neither is wrong
Maturing love is a joy that has moved from blindness
To being at peace with your lover
But most of all it is the recognition
That you are with someone
Who cares, understands and forgives you
Overlooks odd ways and strange sayings
The underlying passion of true love
Never recedes or diminishes, but grows
Easier in the knowledge of  an element of comfort
In wonderment and true happiness
Our jagged edges of self are no longer apparent
And the depth of our rounded love clasps us together
In time and space

Giving up on desire
Doesn't mean anything negative
But the fact that this has moved
From there to excitement
To fanatical activity
Return to the basic elements
From working out my approach
My message, my feelings, my love
It's hugely powerful
This emotive movement within
This cry for fulfilment
For manic soothing, showing
Just doing it and not wasting this impetus
To create and make marks
The result is immaterial
The process all.

Capturing pure light
Holding my hands in coupling
Watching through my fingers
Grading my thoughts in a scale of values
From darks into the highlight
Make me aware of the plan
Tell me what you're doing
Feed me the vision and open up
Plan and concentrate
Relax your arms, your neck
Give your subject some credibility
Don't allow your self to be intimidated
Face the wall, take a break
Look again at your subject
Complete your scanning
Think nothing just look
Your first mark is important
Take your time
And draw.....

Many reasons why
Most times to think
To cleanse my soul of guilt
Empty my barren status of senseless killing
The morning light creeps into your eyes
To believe you're right
Deciding how to feel
About the noon of your changing spirit
Take the whole of the body
And mash into ******* gulps of fresh air
No I do not and nor will I
I want say these words
My faceless behaviour is ****** and meaningless
It shows no spine where desire is the lead
Fair enough to live in your world
But don't suggest a change
Unless it goes through
Contempt for empty promises
So stay silent or describe nothing
Make your move or keep quiet
Position yourself to reflect beliefs
Soaking up the message is poor
Make no mistake it's seen to be useless
Helps no one and certainly not you
So much to gain from that step forward
Respect and relief, sleeping nights
Daytime journeys have the right to make
Your heart feel light
It's changing times, changing times.

Coming to one morning
My dreamy eyes espied
The moon reflected in a spoon
The tea had sunshine in the cup
The plate of toast was sea
The fire of love was in my heart
And lived along with me
My daily chore was simple
To make the seasons bright
To come and face the morning
After uncertainty of night.
Keep smiling through the daytime
Make contact with your self
Avoid the downsides in the way
Especially your wealth
Life has many promises
Most may not agree
That always there is cheerfulness
Along the road you see.
Make every day your challenge
And smile if you are sad
It's rarely quite as nasty
Or anything like as bad.

To winter from autumn seems gradual
the colder days seem never to come
then suddenly
Evenings dark and misty, mornings grey
Daytime unpredictable as moods
Changing the way I feel about the season
Can be down to the moment
As the weather is pocketed in sealed containers
waiting for nature to unwrap
Crisp leaves that grow slippery and brown
as they become a slight carpeting on the dampness
Stones of summer now covered in brown rain
their reflective paths a dismal slide, waiting
for your forceful heel to push against the tide
Steaming car exhausts hang in the air
The drivers clothed in coloured warmth
avoiding the stupid local cold
Inside the cabins the impossible air grates
through the vents and produces unnatural
heat as respectful workers chug their way onward
The uncertain and limbo times of autumn's life
is it just a precurser to the false star of Christmas
A painful unnecessary period of man's making
For what? A need to have time feeling justified
Of wasted resource and overfeeding.
How desperate this must sound to our ancestors
The souls that made us what we are.
Who had precious few pleasures. How much
would they appreciate our behaviour
At this time of fallow and rest. Conserving,
containing, consolidating our harvest
Saving our gain from mother earth
To keep our winter wholesome and honest.
No need to look far for goodness, the days
are all exquisite, the elements bring us
back to our roots and encourage our piety, for
each and everyone I ask for moderation,
careful spending and realisation that the
moving of warm, to cool, to cold is a message of love
from our earth. Not a reason to spend
A reason to exploit or ignore the wonderful gift
we are sent at Yule, the chance to dwell
and to mull over the year and be thankful
For we are the keepers of the earth
an endowment of faith and love for all
Be still and feel the chill air as it encompasses
our body but most of all enjoy the peace
As earth sleeps

To bring us to the end of our year
The Time of rest is here at least for a while
Thoughtful journeys of discovery
Has us enjoying new places
In each stop we gave a heartfelt thanks
For helping us travel to this place of joy
October winds scud across caravan grey skies
Leaving a montage of images flooding our heads
Dangerous narrow lanes formulate hand held maps
Dancing on the edge of troupes of clowns or farmers
Giving the land its final tidy before winter slips its icy fingers
Around nature's final gasp of warmth

Your stone like toes in steel toe capped boots
Are no protection from the freezing rime.
Suddenly the sun breaks through the tiniest
Break in the battleship grey overcast
All too soon it is gone as the cloud heals
To keep the weak orange light from destroying the
Blanket of darkness on the cosmic washing line

Gentle love is a touch
An instant fix to a dull day
Please put just your finger on my hand
Merited I hope..

Proud am I to have your love
So grateful for small elements
In the worlds bother
You can cure me

Fix my frayed soul
And smooth out my trepidations
Heal my split day
Melt my heart

Take the small breeze
That wraps around me
The breeze of your love
Cooling and calming

In my youth I knew you
I knew you would come for me
I waited and waited whilst you trod softly
Your fairy steps on the grass

May you be fulfilled
As the bee in the flower
The fresh wave that consumes the sand
Like s tranquil stroke of love

I' didn't always have your heart
But since we've been one
The setting sun no longer
Rests ******* the horizon of hope

Break through the nights peace
With simple birdsong
The melody of togetherness
Makes waking an adventure of magnificence

Smile as we sit looking away
Fading edges blur our dancing hearts
The mellowness of summer
Overrides the harshness of winter

Our spring and newly borne spirit
Is gathering energy and love
Wrapped in natural measures
To enjoy as we might

For my Jan
I love you as always ***

Grey days require colourful thinking
Bouncing energy is felt
as usual with most people's faces drawn in wonder
Why do we speak out of turn?
When those that know nothing are hungry for love

How many times do we waste our actions
We never think of where we are going
And if we might care for those that suffer
Though the lack of comfort is undisclosed
We should know what this leads to
Not pretty but to a crescent of shame
Not liking definite lessons of our pathetic existence.
Singeing ones hair on a dancing candle can mean only one thing
The flaying arms of outrageous and careless action
Spells veritable acquiescence in the days events

Notice your body
Watch the curves on the numbers on the weighing machine
Scales are for dragons, lizards and fish, not you
Don't be sure that tomorrow your heart won't be aching
For the fresh winds that drag you sideways into
A superfluous distant horizon and grateful solitude
In my life I've had stirring moments but
I realise that every time I wake
My greatest achievement is still to come
Nonetheless I am delighted that I have made it
Perhaps from which eventually all my life will be judged
No word remembered, no action recalled
But the marks I've made on my canvases will tell all

Spiralling expectations are often dashed
Nothing is usually clear at the start
An opportunity is flagged but often
It's not really the case
Use our Company and make your name
Use our gallery, service, mailer, contacts
It's great
Oh but just one thing we're new to this
Yet our hopes are high and someone has promised
To put you on their list...we'll only charge you
If we sell something, OK?

Fraught yet tender the day begins
Unexpected effort is surprising
Time is the ruler
As simple goals are thwarted
In the end winning through
And seems a greater achievement
Muzzy head makes the effort
More difficult, strenuous lethargy
A careful check of the time indicates
Not everyone made the mark
Not everyone gave the same
Or achieved what this poor soul
Was even too weak to decree
Continue is a trait
'Keep going' a phrase that
Could be emblazoned on the carved
Headstone of my tomb
But going where at that point?
No medal required, no shout
Of appreciation
Just an understanding that when
All is lost or seems just too hard
My natural instinct is to continue
No deviation or side swipes
Solid unity of mind and body
Not even clever but just how it is

Remembering that day
The first sight of your little face
Rounded cheeks and beautiful mouth
Eyes tightly shut.
How proud I was to have
a daughter
Since then I have continued
to be proud and thankful
How many Dads have such beauty
****** into their lives that lasts?
Not just beauty of a visual nature
But one that is from the core
Throughout body and soul.
You have never given a second
of disappointment or sadness
No anger, no worry nor concern
Just happiness and joy
Perfection is an over used hyperbole
In this case not
Thank you for giving me and everyone
the love and steadfast care
We may or may not deserve.
So on this special day
From my heart and from
every fibre of my being
I want to tell you that
There is no-one like you
You have a special place inside me
My love goes with you always
May you feel the energy of the cosmos
Caring for you and the life blood
Of our earth supporting
Helping and keeping you safe
Amongst the trials of this mortal life
And as the winter solstice approaches
When the sun is reborn into our world
May you have health and love always

For my special daughter Vicky

Dad ***

Keeping me here in your heart
Is all I ever wanted
No special fanfare
No mission or announcement
Journeying together is everything
No looking sideways but forwards
Don;t turn around to see, focus on the horizon
Greater love is hard to see from the vision
We created when we met.
How terrible when the peace is broken
And our day is shaken
Not under the spell of you but in,
in pure love as ever anyone can be
Can you imagine the day without this?
The day without our silly games and our
rhetoric of simple living
Hands touching even now is electric
Anything else is like a firework
Shooting into the inky sky and lifting
Everything in it;s path
Incredibly we are grounded now
Even dreams
Following and holding us
I know my life has meaning
The only true meaning is us.

For my lovely Jan ***

Fear of the next day
Content at the thought of being inside
The world and the people you know
May be there but do they care
Really care and pass their day in the
Mirror of your life
Hankering after a peaceful finale
A strange edifice of warming thoughts
Surrounding my heart and my simple body
Do not keep a vigil on me
Don't pretend you care
When you quite simply aren't even
In the wreck of the days proceedings
I cannot tell you the things you need to hear
My voice is silent as the moon
I feel sorry for you but then
You feel the same way for yourslf
Isn't that how it gets when time
Just ticks away at the clockface of immobility
My love is still here as ever it was
I always think poor man
I can't justify this message as it manifests
A lump within my throat and I can hear
My heart beating out an untimely rhythm
Afraid of the future, don't be
Your resolve is impressive
Continue your day to day survival
You will surprise yourself as weeks
turn into months then years
There is a life, just believe it
For each must bear the hard cross of lost
Passion and of pleasant encounters
It seems that these count for nothing in the
Short term of soul searching and nostalgia
Nothing is now beyond you
Your best period may be just about to arrive.

For my friend Ken

Dear ancestors hear my voice
On this Samhain eve I have a
Message for you
Be sure I have found my love
A love that releases me
The version of me you may not know
The one that I have became
It is true that this love has grown
Grown into a perfect and lasting covenant
Love that is rare and true
She is the embodiment of me in a
Special and all seeing person
She has given me sight to see the world in its glory
The Vision of which I have never known
She has given me heart to carry on when all seems lost
Courage to face each day
The tenacity to make the most of my life and of hers
The soul that we share is complete in the extreme
It is extreme as it is perfect and as one
She gives me more than this more than I could ever
Ever ever say.
I found her just six years ago
She came to me in a rush of circumstance
Something unexpected and yet hoped for
I can say much of this but all I need to say
Is that I love her so dearly it hurts
It hurts because life itself is so fragile.
I hold this love in my hand and cherish it
Cherish this day as we walk together into our
Seventh year through the mist and veil
Of Samhain, oh Samhain,
This is our time  

Max Hale
Dedicted to my Jan on the anniversary of our meeting six years ago.

Camping out is an experience everyone should have
The cool grass in the morning and the birdsong
Timeless air keeps you alive, energises the soul.
Freezing feet and nose is inevitable as blanket or sleeping bag
Don't quite make the grade
The hard ground or undersheet has a smell that remains
In your nose and in your memory
Bringing the place back to you in your latter years.
Once breakfast is cooking everything seems OK
The worst part is the transition of night into day
Then day into night,
It's easy, stay up and just look upwards
No light pollution, no clouds, no sound
Drink in the inky blackness as Orion's three winking lights
Demonstrate how wonderful life is
But more importantly how small we are
Tiny dim orange lights glow in the tents and vans
Muffled noises diminish as the occupants climb
Into their cosy beds and roll themselves up
To keep out the cold, the inevitable insects
One by one the darkness becomes complete
Until no more music can be heard or
Voices, rustling sounds or whimpering children
Wanting their teddy bear or comfort blanket
Mummies and Daddies soothing
The silence is deafening save a cool breeze
Just flapping the tent canvas, small cracking
Sounds as it rolls and then straightens.
Rolls then straightens gently, gently, gently
The guy ropes straining a little then relaxing
Another night comes to the campsite
Enveloped in darkness all are safe and inside
Their little tent or van
Goodnight campers, sleep tight.

Max Hale

To care for someone is normal
To even love them is equally fair
For friends can be as close as family
If not closer
Carving their place in your heart
With their personality and impulsive energy
The simple air about them
Sometimes irritating
Yet not half as much
As their endearing and carefree way
The  sideways glance they give you
Knowing their aspirations
You, a role model
A mentor, a figure of respect
Of strength, of calm
Friends
Friends
They know us
They don't have to be there
Unless they want to be
Jokingly they hold a weakness of yours
Up so that everyone can  see
Making you laugh at yourself
Remembering a time when you slipped
When they tripped over, you remember?
Special times,
Can you imagine that friend
Can you imagine that person
No don't......
I know what you're going to say
Keep going each of us
The times are good
We must contain our emotions
And Remember those days
I can't really forget how they made me feel
How I loved that smile
How I felt when sometimes it didn't work out
when the plans went a bit wrong.
Don't you think we laughed
We did, we did, we did
So funny, and yet now those times
Seem a million years ago
Or only yesterday
Or the day before

From where we are
I would travel back there
Right now
Right now and relive those moments
That moment when we sat with our tea
Telling about our weekends
Suddenly that cheeky smile
That vulnerable soul
That ****** stupid grin that lit up their face
And gave a feeling of life to everyone
I could hug you and squeeze you up
Thank you for that....

For my friend, my lovely friend
I miss you

What gentle images in the fading frescos of ancient Italy
Sylph-like figures gliding
Along emerald green and viridian pathways
Showing delicate movements of sophisticated people
Brought down to earth by strong fighting men.
Disciplined soldiers with life long missions
Finding resolve in their heritage and republican history
Gaining new ground and no prisoners taken
Their senators and loved ones walk the streets and market places
Regardless of sweat and toil of their constant striving
The upper classes remain in peace with their souls.
Vellum, wax or stone, the messages remain
Suspended within their time
Yet the beauty of their images
Depicting a tranquil and calm epoch
We can never know the daily lives for sure
But beauty remains and we will accept this simple declaration

Quaint I strain at completing
My latest work of art
Resolute my ears hear the sounds
Lost in the time of our lives
Make this our freedom dash
Our statement of intent
Care not for rules of others
Our song can be heard by many
They will listen and weep as we live

Fair and brightly shining
So is my heart
This new day
Bring the sky
The blue sky
After its hidden time
Out of the cupboard
Or the laundry where
It's refreshing wash and scrub
Now renders it clear, blue and reflective
Fly to the roof of this world
Be our cover and our umbrella
Our hope and soul-lifting spirit
Our eyes to absorb the azure
The reds, oranges and yellows
Of every day, morphing from
Morning till night.
When your work is done
The moon, your friends the stars
And the still black night
Take the evening shift
To enable you to rest
Refreshed and new
Ready to fly once more
The sun pinning you with it's
Warmth of global reach
In time and space
Holding your hand as together
You light our world

Dragon fire come burn me,
Turn my thoughts into carbon.
My purest intentions will extinguish your flame,
Your mythology grants me the wish
To climb the mountains of despair,
To conquer the hills and make love
To the people with my thoughts
Gaining supremacy is not my aim,
Nor is victory by default.
My measure is  to teach,
To hold the universe in my grasp
And shake the evil and the egotistic
Taste the goodness of universal love
Quell the fiery breath of the dragon
To a whisper of man's destructive force
The green scales of his skin slowly falling
Realising his strength is waning.
The knight of the natural world
Has shown how giants and dragons
Can be brought to book
By common sense and love.

By Max Hale

Life is a blessing from the Cosmos  
We are made from stardust…
Some stars burn brightly for millennia
Others maybe not so long but are just as beautiful.
As we live on earth in our time
Lots of stars are coming to the end of their
Shining and twinkling period
They have given us light and brought
Us out of the earthly darkness
Keeping us safe and lighting our way
The universe is a volatile place
A truly living, breathing space
Full of planets, red dwarfs
Black holes, meteors and galaxies
As in our life on earth, stars must fade
To give birth and make room
For the wondrous cycle that has taken place
Since time began
The disappearance of a star is not the end
It’s just the start…………. of a new life
A new star that will bear different characteristics
It won’t ever replace the old one
But some of that faded star will live on
A new born vibrant and beautiful star.
Your loved one is there
Just transformed to give a different light
New hope and new love
As we come from the stars so we will return
To the Cosmos shining and bright for all time.

Max Hale

Wood smoke carries on the air
The time driven memory
Of ****** basics and soulful
Earthy humankind
Surrounding each personal cell and
Lifting the arm-stretching power
Of fire and the need to feel warmth
The technology of modern man
Is dashed on the rocks of time
As we drift with the stench of our youth
The well worn shoe and the eiderdown
The hot water bottle and the candle
Flickering and holding us with
A knowledge of comforts
And our understanding
We live within this world and feel
The circle of life that smells of
Log fires in the autumn and the sooty
Blackbird song of impending winter
The warble and the peaceful heart of
Everything we love as seasonal
Mists and dancing flames keep us
Wrapped in our primeval lives
Will autumn bring a kind or hard winter
No matter, we have coped with them all

By Max Hale