My mind is like a griddle
on which inspiration sizzles;
I let it gently fry and
turn it over
so neither side
will get burnt.

I’ve gotta cook it slow and steady –
and better wait until it’s ready
cause there’s a lesson I’ve learnt
from times before;
from when it looked all cooked and tasty
but its insides were still raw
so the inspiration was wasted
leaving my imagination insatiated,
somewhat unsatisfied and sore.

So this time I let it fry,
on the griddle of my mind
Until it’s done right to the middle
So I know that when I whittle down
into its many drooling layers
the plentiful things waiting there
will be the rich juices of words, rhythm and rhyme.

I hide in solitude to show myself in plain sight.
I dream so that I can create reality.
I crumble so that I can build up.
My quivering is your peace.
My leisure is your reach.

Unplug yourself
And in that stark still shade
Enjoy the glory of your imaginings -
Often conceived, rarely nurtured,
Scarcely shared
Or allowed to thread through the laughter
Of the warm flickering shadows
Of hearth and home.
Give voice and shape and colour
To every faint ember
And you - will - soar.

“I’m your wave – I told her –  
Lay your head right here,
Softly on my shoulder.
Let your thoughts roam free.”

“You’re my air – she told me –
You’re my life and sun.
Singly we are nothing.
Allied we are one.”

“I’m your fire – I uttered –
Burning bright and mild.”
“That be true“ – she muttered,
Slender, sound and wild.

When we are together,
Nothing holds us down
The unwashed may blather,
Let them laugh and frown.

Floating through the cosmos
On a marble blue,
With the odds against us,
We make dreams come true.

24-4-2017