Some stars are
       destined for      
                  plummet                                      
                          But,
I
  Will
       Always
             Catch
                   You
                            When you plunge.

Oh dear little darling, dear little sister
sorry for breaking your leg in twister
Sorry for setting fire to your dolls
and for eating all your cinnamon rolls
But I love you dear sister with all my heart
Love you to the end
Loved you from the start.

As I walk
the words of those that never existed
echo inside of my mind

I have learned
that you don't have to share each other's blood
to be the closest brothers

I can hear
thousands of voices swelling up inside
each begging for just one chance

I can see
every one of those smiling faces
that I've never laid eyes upon

Now I know
I'm friends with those that never existed
those that I have never met

I have fought
hundreds of battles with nary a scratch
but been mortally wounded

For I am
A warrior, a queen, a servant, a child,
a mere bystander

Because I
Have a library inside of my head
of all that I read

Love that never leaves
Love that is deep within
Love that never can be lost
Love that I call Almighty
Love that I worship as my maker
Love that abides in all
Love, it is for you that I exist

Feeling at this time, that I should really go to bed, but
Still I lay awake, and contemplate, what Fred Hampton said:
“If you dare to struggle, then you dare to win, if you dare
Not to Struggle, then you don't deserve to win.”
They shot him dead in his bed, tell me how long has it been?
10, 20, nearly 50 years, since the things that happened then,
What happened to the Panthers, Malcolm X and Dr. King, or
The Anarchists in Spain, the songs of victory they'd sing?
What happened to the world of struggle, in which they all used to live?
Where liberation's sweet embrace propelled the efforts they would give
You see, we need to put the ‘unity’ back into ‘community,’ and
That begins with you and me, living side by side, and
Working with each other, taking measures to deride, the
Ills of our condition that serve only to divide,
Those old notions of race, those old notions of gender, with
Raised fists, as we march, taking heed to engender,
A whole new way of life, and a vision to render,
Filled with class consciousness, making us a contender,
Maybe I could lie down, and I could find some rest now,
If we would only stop to realize that we're the real ‘how.’

This happy land of Diemens, dogs and bush-walks,
Creative flurries, chats over beer, spag bol and chocolate.
Van trip, scoot down the coast,
Wander along the beach.

Talk of this and that, laugh
And put the world to rights.
Thrash out ideas, share some thoughts,
Wonder if living could be easier?

Two friends who shared a trip to the Beach twenty years back take stock;

And find that from start they had more in common than they knew.
Now seperated by ten thousand miles, A thousand quid and two days flying,
They're closer than they were
sat facing front in that old escort van.

Another chapter ends
Or begins
Or begins and ends.

I awake and think of boarding,
My plane.
I hadn't realised how simple it was
To just be,
To just exist side by side
With an old friend who you connect with.

No need for the usual preambles
Just straight to the core.
Don't waste time, because 20 years fit badly into five days.
And What happens if you click cancel....

before the download has finished?

I'm so reluctant to leave.
These days have been so easy and fun and blessed.
Brotherhood is hard to find
And when will I return?

A red light shines through my window
And appears on the wall across the room.
It blinks yellow and moves as the people opposite
Reverse from their drive
And head off to work.

The daylight outside is growing,
The rumble in the air is not traffic
But waves breaking on the shore
About fifty meters away.

Soon I'll get up, make tea
And we'll all go for a walk.
Me, my frind Toby, Pablo the happy staffie
And Ava the lucky foster dog,
Wandering care free along the beach
as the waves break around our feet.

A plane flies overhead. *******.
Okay I know!
All things come to an end.
And this too shall pass.
It's just I haven't often wanted to stay this much.
It's so fun here,
And life outside can be a bit full on.

It was a simply soothing sound.
Seemingly surreal, severing the silence
With even sin surrendering to the sublime symphony
Of sirens signifying salvation.
Leaving legs lying limp and lifeless,
Losing a life I'd have liked to live.
Leaping, laughing, or lounging lazily
I fear for my future
Forever fighting ferociously.
Because four fearsome phantoms
Brought bars, blades, and bats
To beat my bewildered brother and I blind
Before we both blacked out from blood loss.
Now there's a knife notched in the nape of his neck.
He'll never know the nuance of another night;
But now I know the necessity of the nightmarish noose

One, of the two chairs, thrones under
Chinese twilight’s a’swirl and vacuous
come my evening’s stroll. Where once
two men would tinker, tea, and tease
atop a’board of chess, only one remains,
and that one would ‘ever cry. Tears that
only grey’d make, fears that only age
could stake, and a pecking order with
number nigh. I knew, come wail and so
entered the fireworks, flowers atop
promenades near, that the last game of
chess was just the other night. The last
cup of tea was just the other night, and
the one left behind thought about the
“night,” as we all do. When’s mine a
coming? When’s mine a’coming? Just
when is my night a’coming? So that I
may see you again, dear friend, let me
see you again.

Live every day like it was meant to be,
helping all those who want to be free.
Feel the warmth in a genuine smile,
a childish giggle can bridge the miles.

Surround everybody with happy ways,
bask in the heat of the suns warm rays.
A world of love and peace for all,
where we help the ones who trip and fall.

...

I may be a dreamer of fanciful sights
but dreams are better than childish fights.
“Mine’s better than yours”, “But mine is real”,
such childish pettiness in every deal.

Look at the world as it falls apart,
tearful eyes washing aching hearts.
Families decimated; children denied
the right to live at their parents side.

Its time to put away such childish days
and mend the scars left along the way,
see the world for what it could be,
a world of peace, where all are free.

Look at the smile on the face of a child
who no longer has to run and hide.
It'll warm your soul and melt your heart
and I cannot think of a better place to start.

Why do we fight, why do we hate,
why do we lock and defend a gate?
Why can't we live without all the pain,
just put it behind us; we're all the same?

My blood runs deep in fragile veins
but it’s red, just like yours; it's just the same!
Too priceless to be spilled on hot dusty streets,
congealed and dead under cold marching feet.

Life is so precious, regardless of creed,
we should focus on strife and genuine need,
it surrounds us all, wherever we go,
the dead and the dying on crumbling floors.

Look into your heart, beneath all the greed
and help each other so we can all succeed.
Life is for living, for love and for joy,
for everybody, be they girl and boy.

I, for one, am so sick and tired
of all the wars and funeral pyres.
It's time to grow up and open the gate,
welcome the friendship and throw out the hate.


*
Written by Darren Scanlon, 29th July 2014.
Revised 5th August 2015.
©2015 Darren Scanlon. All rights reserved.

What is life?
Is it a ringing bell?
Or it might be love,
Any way you spell,
Life is not a lonely dark night,
Neither, it is hell,
Have faith, belief, and devotion,
Spread its lovely smell,
Life always gave you chance,
Whenever you fell,
Go for your lovely dreams,
Ignore what they foretell
Love, be a keyword for you,
So do I wish you, well
You got to play a bigger role,
You are not a tiny cell,
Open up, be friendly,
Get out of your shell,
Love is life,
Life is all love, that is how I spell!!