In the midst of sorrow and tears,
Embrace your pain,
Craft it into a sweet wine,
Imbibe it's positive energy!

In the midst of sorrow and tears,
Make room for a smile and laughter,
Intertwine agony with a kind deed,
And color it with a rainbow of humanity!

In the midst of sorrow and tears,
Derive strength from God with a little prayer.
Plant a garden of hope in your heart, dreaming
Of a new dawn, a beautiful day, and enduring sunshine!

Hussein Dekmak

It wasn't that sunny out
Just overcast enough to have a picnic in the garden
You never liked when it was too sunny
It made you uncomfortable
It gave you the feeling of being thrown on a stage without a script
Spotlight shining into your eyes
Followed by the anxiety before a performance

You didn't know if a bad performance is better than none at all
Yet here you were, on a stage set with hibiscus and orchids
With the sun shining in your eye
Wait no, not the sun
Her name was Soleil
She just had eyes like the sun
And she wanted an unrehearsed dance
Before you could realize, her spotlight had already engulfed you
You never liked when it was too sunny
Yet you're here smiling and not feeling too uneasy

So you danced, leaping from shadow to shadow
She came closer, shining even brighter
You covered your eyes
While the shadows under your feet disappeared
You wanted to retreat with them but it was too late

You, who never liked when it was too sunny
Now found yourself engulfed in her heat
Evaporating with no cloud cover to save you

Mercilessly, she, who wanted an unrehearsed dance
Started dancing with you
The hibiscus and orchids caught fire by her feet
She took no pity of them
You didn't either, knowing you were joining them soon

You watched as she reached to touch you
She held you like paper
As if she was ready to forge the sun's signature on you
You held her like a dancer who forgot what move came next

Without warning, she removed the cover from your eyes
And set fire to your lips
And set fire to your body
And set fire to your garden
Yet you smiled with the taste of the sun lingering on your tongue

This was the first time you've tasted fire
And you didn't want it to be your last
You thought, maybe it wasn't that bad to be ignited in her spotlight like this
She whispered into something your ear but you couldn't speak Goddess
But you knew that all you wanted to tell her was "encore".

Everyone only appreciates the sun
Apparently beach days and beers
are the only definition of fun.

Blinding sunshine and
sticky, wet, sweat,
it's the only weather
I wish to forget.

But why doesn't anyone
care about the rain,
it's the only weather
that keeps me sane.

You can watch the sky
become dull and gray,
as bright rays of sunshine
fade away.

Residual slime trails amongst
endless concrete plains
An excretion from yr mucus membrane
What an odd mechanic be your(yr) existence
Catching rays which may also be yr doom
And the shines glimmer on the dews
Shiny tip-tops: behold the grass towers
A city of stars along the lawns
Fowl performing melodies
Searching for a tempo, breaks the beat
Because it’s intrinsically
there, within, everywhere

i wish to feel your lips on
mine
i want to feel our bodies
intertwine
i need to feel the warmth of your
skin
as golden rays of sunshine pour
in
you make each touch feel like a
sin
but even the angels can't ignore this
passion

A blue sky sunny day
To help us work rest and play.
As good as the old Mars bar,
It’s bound to take us far.

There’s nothing like some sunshine,
To put us onto Cloud Nine.
Filling us with glee.
Time for a cuppa tea.

Better still a beer,
I do wish you were here.
Can do the garden too.
Oh so much to do.

But the river keeps on flowing,
On to who knows where.
No idea where we’re going
Whenever we sail down there.

See that ancient ruin
Telling of times long past.
Something worth pursuing,
Longer may it last.

All is better for that sun.
We can have such fun.
Don’t just stand and stare,
Get out in that fresh air.

Paul Butters

© PB 23\10\2020 (3).

It's ok to not be sunshine
It's ok to cry at night
Because other people cry too
And for them, the sun is too bright

we'll get through these together
we'll make it through the bad weather;

we know everyday is a new day,
as long as we're here and we'll still stay.

some days are really rainy,
but with you, i feel less lonely;

one day, hand in hand we'll see the sunshine,
and as one sooner we'll feel just fine.