Sian Carrington: Poems

1.4k · Apr 2014

Sian Carrington Apr 2014

The light is flickering, and then it is gone.
The world is plunged into shadow,
Like a wave,
Washing over an already finished canvas.

I tremble as an infantile stranger,
Passes me a weak cup of tea,
Made just the way I like it, they say.

Words are uttered in a foreign tongue,
Faces are distorted.
Thoughts are hazy,
and memory a blur.

I am a shadow of my former self.
Blind in the darkness. Unseeing.
Searching alone,
Swallowed by the deafening buzz of foreign noise.

The light is flickering, and then it is on,
The world is bright and I am safe,
I smile as my granddaughter passes me my tea,
Made just the way I like it.

Love is what drives me towards the light,
When I lie in bed and think at night.
Although I drift away for a while,
I am always there.
Remember child.

Dedicated to my grandma who died of vascular dementia,
and my family who retained their strength throughout.

#love #strength #remember #family #light #memory #dementia

1.3k · Jan 2016

Oceans Apart

Sian Carrington Jan 2016

Oceans Apart

We met on the pebbles of a southern British beach
as a night sky of stars unravelled.
Beneath silver moonlight and crimson harbour lights,
you enthused about your plans to travel.
Inspired by your spirit and dreams to roam far,
You captivated me from the start,
But hope washed away in a wave of disappointment,
As I imagined us two worlds apart.

Yet our paths intertwined like two chapters of a book,
and resumed our unfinished story.
Beyond the great horizon and vast stretches of sea,
we connected in virtual territory.
After seven months immersed in this online world,
Christmas carried you home,
And I longed for the day I would see you before me
to replace the small screen on my phone.

We met in verdant gardens of London's Green Park
as a British chill gripped us raw,
Heart-hammering. Words-failing. Mind-racing.
Speechless; my heart soared.
Yet your adorable smile warmed winter's chill,
and suddenly all worries melted away,
There was no tension or strain, but a breath-taking moment
knowing I'll forever cherish this day.

A Christmas of ice-skating and New Years in Dublin,
These moments we will always share.
When you venture back south for your second year of travel,
I will wish everyday that I am there.
All I ask as you jet beyond the equator,
is to keep me close at heart,
In four months time, our paths will meet again;
Distance shall not tear us apart.

A very personal poem, but one that I would like to share to those who can emphathise with long distance relationships.
''Parting is such sweet sorrow''.
But being in love means your paths will always lead to one another

#love #world #happy #relationship #goodbye #distance #travel #technology #destiny #australia

1.2k · Apr 2016

The Long March to Freedom

Sian Carrington Apr 2016

The Long March to Freedom

Here lies ahead our road to freedom*
Cracked deep beneath our blistered toes
Seeped full with red and black ink
that had once painted the shades of propaganda.
Our boots, soulless and worn like hearts of lead
leaked blood-stained fear and red-raw dread.

The path ahead of stone and ice stretched on
for decades... or was it days?
Time was the beat of marching men.

Through the thick yellow fog, we spluttered, cursed blind,
and choked on the calls of fallen heroes whose
cries grew distant with every staggered step.

Beneath the ghostly glare of shattered street lights, we trudged
on and on.
Until our ankles, raw and bruised
buckled beneath our weights;
Down onto the ice to sooth sore limbs
and stifle the scorn
that droned on the wind.

We will not surrender. This day
we are men with visions of glory that glow beyond golden gates
and wait for us in old age. But not today.

Today we make history;
So that one day when I sit my granddaughter on my knee
I can tell her why she, her grandpa and her country are free.

This is dedicated to my grandpa, a wing commander in the RAF during the second world war and a subsequent POW in Stalug Luft III. The poem relates to his march from Poland to Germany in 1945. I have never been more proud of anyone. We are forever indebted to those who fought for our freedom.

#love #war #peace #freedom #life #death #world #hope #family #march

1.1k · Jul 2014

Unrequited

Sian Carrington Jul 2014

Unrequited

Tucked away in the crevices of my mind,
Are shades of sorrow you left behind.
Memories of joy and sweet contentment,
Innocent of hate and bitter resentment.
Initiating as friends who desired affection,
Enthralled by lust and blind to speculation
From those whom regarded it all "too soon",
To prove them right and close in June.

Six months of sweet, indolent days,
Precious as the next due to the simple way
Your presence alone kept me elated,
Your revered wit held me captivated.
The moments we shared basking in the sun,
Or curling with the kittens - equally as fun.
The hushed inertia of our days spent together
Was not irksome and dull but treasured forever.

I can adopt adjectives, embellishments and rhyme,
In the child-like hope they may turn back time.
I can exhaust poetry as a means to say
That I miss you more each day.
But should you read this, I pray you must know
That the colourless wave of self-pity and woe
Brightens and shallows with every passing day,
And that our precious moments are pocketed away
In the warm embrace of my broken heart,
Slowly mending now that we are apart.
Like a phoenix rising from ash-glistened coal,
I will grow from the embers and rejuvenate my soul.
I will rise again and start anew,
And cherish the days I shared with you.

This is a tribute to someone who left me recently. I am not bitter or resentful but grateful for our time together. Writing this has helped me to mend and move on, and realise that some paths are meant to cross.

#heartbreak #friends #sadness #hope #memories #unrequited

1.1k · Apr 2015

Love is a web of art

Sian Carrington Apr 2015

Love is a web of art

Poetry is a dance
Of woven words
Crafted from the intricate print
Of memory.
Like that of a widow's woven art,
Patterns unveil the melodies
Of our hearts.

Then may we indulge in the fabric
Of love,
And dance upon fair dewdrops.
May we spin the initial swirls
Of sweet silk,
Beneath the shimmer
Of the resplendent moon.

Till the thread coarsens at a core
Of wearied entanglements.
The ghost of silk glows far away
Haunting the distant margins
Of our memories.

Scorch this knot
Of coarse wire,
Lest the dance of rhetoric will cease,
The fine fabric of love will sever,
The melodies in our hearts will mute.
Burn this knot. Blaze it with
the endurance
Of timeworn love.

The dance beckons its final stage,
Where we ignite the warmth
Of familiar eyes,
Lure them into a new dance
Of wordplay.

We are all but weavers
Spinning satin spheres
Dancing in discourse
To the symphony
Of our hearts.

Love is a blend of silk and knots. It can be initially sweet but followed by tangles. Yet with the right strength and enough passion, love never dies. We are all weaving our webs to catch it.

#love #poetry #dance #music #web #rhetoric #caughtinlove

996 · Jul 2015

Messenger

Sian Carrington Jul 2015

Messenger

As light as air and pure as light,
Drifting along on celestial flight,
Guided by gentle wind and weather,
Fallen from flocks that fly together,
Behind the shadow of loss and fear,
Is a silent promise that hope is near.

#love #death #hope #heaven #angels #feather

591 · Aug 2015

Heartsong

Sian Carrington Aug 2015

Heartsong

For Mum*

From the warm chambers of a mother's heart,
a melody beckons new life to start.
A mellifluous miracle. This is nature's cue
to paint life's shades with warmer hues.
A harmony resonates that only she can hear;
a poignant reminder that hope is near.
Her heart's song binds the maternal bond,
and seals its protection from that moment on.

She gave me wings to pursue life's flight;
Settled my mind lest it woke me at night;
Warmed my heart through woe's bitter glare;
Restored life's colour through her devotion and care;
Indulged me with all that I could ever need;
Supplied me with the pabulum to go forth and succeed.

Her benevolence and kindness, her ardour and strength
are treasured qualities that perfectly represent
her role as a mother, my idol and friend;
a beloved inspiration from now 'till the end.
Like a resplendent array of stars above,
we glow together in light and love.

The quintessence of strong; we thrive as one,
drifting in harmony to the beat of her song.
Never to be parted by life's cruel schisms;
we're written into the chords of her heart's pure rhythm.
From the first harmonic beat to lullabies in the nursery,
her rhapsodic care has prepared me for this journey.
and compelled me to write about her in my poetry.
Her music evokes memories that shall never fade;
All is protected by the bond that was made.

Not always audible as we journey through life and become deaf to distractions around us... but the unconditional love between a mother and her child is one of the most powerful and poignant pieces of music ever composed.

#love #life #heart #hope #mother #family #song #bond

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