An old man sits
by a roaring fire
roaring with greed
with destruction

A boy comes in to see him
the man looks away
he sends the boy home
noting the tears in his eyes
the rejection

The old man looks out
he sees the boy leave
he settles back again
waiting for the time

The clock chimes
the old man shakes
looking back over
a long happy life
then it ends

n the dark  fields
the night is silent
there is no sound
not even from the tawny owl
flitting through the trees

Then like a child’s blizzards toy
the swirling tornado forms
the black shape grows
increasing in strength

It ***** up corn
like a giant hoover
then spits it out
as if it tasted bad

Then throwing trees
like a child at play
destroying the fence
destroying the barns

Cars like toys are thrown
to the sound of smashing glass
the lamp posts snap
like wooden match sticks

The tornado slows
as though tired
it then disappears
the town can rest again

The wordsmith retires to his private place
to the forge inside his mind
pumps the bellows and stokes the fires
until they are burning with white hot inspiration

He plunges the iron ideas in to the heat
until it is ready to work with
beats them into shape on the anvil of his notebook
using the heavy hammer of his blue ink biro

Every time the hammer strikes
little sparks fly up and dance
words not needed this time depart
to used on another piece

Sometimes the ideas need refining
and have to be reshaped
parts of the cast are sometimes out of place
the spelling needs adjusting
all the time he stays at his smithy
sweat poring off him continuously
while he attempts to forge a master piece

Eventually his task is completed
and left to alone to cool
the forge is dampened down
to be used on the next occasion
his work here is completed
and ready to be seen by others

It all started with a kiss
under the hanging branches of mistletoe
your parents hung up each year in their lounge
as the clock struck the new year our lips met
only for a minute but it felt like longer
I never felt more alive than at that moment

We started seeing each other regularly
every date we went somewhere new
my almost perfect dinner companion
I'd spend most of the meal looking into your eyes
and seeing the love reflected in them

After a few months I gave you a ring
and promised my future to you
I remember seeing you smile despite the tears
as you accepted my proposal

a wonderful wedding we celebrated
under the light of a full moon
I still can see you crying with joy
as you tossed the blue bouquet to your sister

We're still going strong a year later
our first born will be due any day
I don't even know if it's a girl or boy
I've asked you not to tell me
as in some ways I'm hoping for twins

When people ask us how we first met
I smile in happy memory of that first night
we look them in the eyes and reply
"it all started with a kiss"

As the clock ticks closer to midnight
the pale old man sighs aloud
and puts his book down on his bedside table
it will soon be time for his transformation
when he becomes a young baby once more

These 12 months have not been kind to him
many scars and marks cover his face and body
each one is a memory
of those who have died in violence this year

The clock strikes the new year with a resounding crash
the old man fades away
in his place a baby appears
looking slowly around the room
before unleashing a brilliant smile
to the light of a million fireworks

As the year passes he will age
and become an old man again
there is much to do while the year is young
a full 12 months of learning to be had
a whole new set of chapters to be written
he starts to crawl towards the future
whatever it may bring for all

I lie on the scarred battle field
with bloodied arms and legs
listening to the whistling of the shells
the explosions rock the ground

I see my comrades around me
lying unmoving on the mud
my feeble cries for help
land on deaf ears

The sound of whirring wakes me
a man in a white over coat
moves slowly closer
holding out his hand
as if at a meeting

I wake again
along and in a bed
the doctor comes in to see me
his pale face shows sorrow

As I stand alone in the rain
by the big stone monument
I shed a tear and think
how close it was
for one of them
to be me

I stand on a lonely cliff top
my grey half closed eyes
stare at nothing
but the darkened sea

The blind moon escapes the clouds
and shows its shining face
the moon is deaf as well as blind
but every one sees it now

I look at the moon
its shining rays fall on my face
the moon’s face
shimmers in the sea
like a bad reflection