From childhood i've known You
my heart conversed where none could see
gazing up to skies of blue
i thought of You Who caused all to be

everything from something came
but that something had a name
it had a start, a very beginning,
You caused that start to be,

then i was pushed into the mud,
ridiculed for all to see,
i lost You and forsook You,
in my bitterness lost at sea,

now in my noon, i look again,
and find You are the same,
You have not changed that golden chain
hidden from those that seek acclaim

You stay aloof from rationale
from claims of race or national[e]
beyond all colour and prejudice
remain forever was will is.

in the alley, in the dark,
there i heard the canine's bark
there in twilight's shades of grey
felt the fright of unleashed stray

heard his panting as he sped
heard his feet with fear 'n dread
felt his hunger for blood red
as 'lone i stood 'gainst half-bred

as all around world in abeyance
as i became his sole surveyance
as i eyed his hot/cold stare
ocular globes of headlights' glare

and in the days that followed yet
i lost the feel of fear and fret
for in that moment of captured fright
i'd stood on precipice of deathly bite

sometimes i yearn to sing with the stars
to be one with Jupiter, Venus 'n Mars
to scale the heavens, make my voice heard,
to soar ever upwards, on feathers of bird,
to join in the song of orange-tipped rays
that shine over Earth at start of new days
to bathe in the light of Eternal's blue gown
and sew for Him words He can wear as a crown

and at once i am there, in the heavens above,
in the waves and the currents of outpour of love,
dancing among stars of burning white fire
circling with angels of purest desire
the existence of self dissolved in the ether
the soul's divine rest with the Earth far beneath her
spirit at rest in the ***** of Source
in loving embrace of benevolent Force
Mind of the Father and Womb of the Mother,
Arms of my Friend, breath of my Lover

there i forget all the pain and the sorrow
the worry, the fear, the concern of the morrow,
i forget to beseech, to implore and to pray
to scream and to shout, to beg and to say
"Make the world better, that man and beast
not prey on each other, on their downfall not feast,
that each live in harmony as sister and brother
with regard and care and concern for the other,
that there be an end to the senseless warfare,
that breeds on pride, that sows despair,"
To plead, "put a kibosh on the metal annihilator,
the blaster, the bomb, the knife of executioner,
that seeds of pure kindness should sprout and proliferate
heal minds of the mindless and hearts of the ingrates."

i forget to pray, to roar "it's enough!
all the death, all the sickness, all the hurt thereof",
for there in heaven there is only love
there's no mention of pain in the heavens above.

You are G-d's portal
His light uncurl'd
Through mere mortal
He encounters the world

Vegetable 'n mineral are His vibration
Insect and beast His animation
but it's conscious man, zenith o' creation,
that links time 'n place with Realisation

your interaction, base or gold,
lifts the cosmos to worlds untold
or drowns His Spark in mould and canker,
pulling worlds down, hook, line 'n sinker.

so when next a choice presents to you,
to cleave to light or cleave to gloom
whether to heed soul's faint quiet call
or succumb to daemon's ignominious maul

remember this, it's not just you,
it's G-d Himself in what you do,
and ship you sail has many a rider
who'll be affected by your decider

the light you light will kindle hordes
of souls and sparks to reap rewards
its effect is hidden and unseen
it can alter more than you dream

the hole you bore is not just for you
it can sink ship and passengers too.
so though each person is a universe
each connects with all, for good or for worse

it started like any other
a day in a month in a year
i waved good-bye to my brother
mother held back a tear
with pack on my back
i boarded the train
all set to track
a rougher terrain
to mountains alive
with celestial music
a buzzing hive
of quiet acoustic
in wood and in glade
every grass, every blade,
all light 'n shade,
matter calcic and humic,
buttons o' G-d's tunic
shining pure gold
the ancient, the old,
a bastion of peace
from avenging ire
from man's caprice
from world on fire
from lust for success
in G-d's largesse
heavenly blest
no greed or excess
no rush for progress
in milieu of emeralds
no nascent dictator
no destroyer of worlds
no human-life baiter
but midst the Eden
lay archetypal snake
interspersed with reason
bred on heartache
a venomous tooth
foxy and furtive
language uncouth
aggression assertive
coiled at bend
ready to unwend
the henchman at crossroad
waiting at gate
with poisonous goad
and age-old hate
overused trope
from mouth void o' hope
arguments specious
ostensibly sound
gaining impetus
as he held his ground
polluting, plundering
the sweet mountain air
innocence encumbering
with insidious fare
till he'd decimated
the Garden of Eden
it subjugated
to blood of the demon
and G-d had grown wings
had flown far away
the Ancient King
now waits for new day.

there is a light
that shines bright
like the moon in the night

always sealed,
never revealed,
scion of yon Elysian Field

shunning eyes that peer unbidden
to light of soul, always hidden
beneath the scars that life has stricken

a light brilliant because never shown
a light that's hewed from 'neath G-d's Throne
a light burning brightly on its own

so when you see an 'ordinary' guy,
inside shine million suns of sky,
secreted in corporal shrine from on high

whether you know it or not
you've hit the jackpot
just by being alive.

he had the wherewithal and the madness
held West to the wall
exploded ultimate bomb of sadness
laughed at country's fall
there was cough, there was splutter
in the corridors of democracy
there was slight embarrassed stutter
as they crumbled 'fore monocracy
as they waved white flag in flutter
wrung their hands before the violence
as they washed the ash down gutter.
as they kept their pledge of silence

i saw their edifices, beautiful structures,
and gave a sigh of despair,
i'll never be able to manufacture
monuments of such flair

i felt a tap, tug on my sleeve
looked down on wizened man
said he, asmile, 'please believe
your skill to do what you can.'

'each day a brick you can lay
upon the ****** ground,
with dedication, day-by-day,
you'll have built compound'

'a base to build higher still,
one brick at a time,
until there rises upon the hill
a place you can call heim.'

'an edifice of your making
of which you can be proud
an edifice that's breathtaking,
soul-deep and soul-profound.'

Up to Mighty One he came
Inspired man one day
Laid his supplications fore
The One Who holds all sway

Singing songs o' Divine Lily
Stranded in love-affair
'til he got excited and
he shouted into the air:

It's a long way to G-d's Prairie
It's a long long way to go.
It's a long way to G-d's Prairie
To the Sweetest One I know!

Ascend Divine Lily,
Express your love so fair!
It's a long long way to G-d's Prairie
But my heart's right there.

It's a long way to G-d's Prairie
It's a long way to go.
It's a long way to G-d's Prairie
To the sweetest One I know!

Ascend Divine Lily,
Express your love so fair!
It's a long long way to G-d's Prairie
But my heart's right there.

i stand before You
lift my eyes
and you tie my head
unto the skies

but men who hide
their eyes from you
have no guide
inkling or clue

of why they're above
the beast on four
why you might love
your world evermore

dissect the flower, analyse its beauty
listen for heartbeat of soul,
they quash the essence through academic duty
and say they've reached their goal

spirit's illusion, it cannot be,
it shows not up on graph or tree
beauty, a fantasy, ape-evolution,
guilt and merit, states of confusion

and so they educate their world-leaders
their politicians and news-readers
their children and their teachers
church-goers and their preachers

the world's an accident, matter of opinion,
as is the lollygagging of cryptic religion,
then they're surprised, feign outrage
as world fills with killing, **** 'n rampage

sliding down the gutter
sparkling pearl of rain
faster than camera shutter
its flowing down the drain

lost forever drop of blood
once as pure as snow
now intermingles with the mud
with iridescent glow

hermit, stranger, hides his face
in his mother's apron,
spirit, soul, of nameless grace
other-worldly patron

boots composed deriding eyes
trample overhead
and inner spirit withers, dies,
and now is lying dead

defenestration of all that's good
by world blacker than pitch
tainted saint of boyhood
lies defenceless in the ditch

there once was a time,
before your time,
when men were gentlemanly
and the ****** was celibacy

the air was purer
and if we were poorer
our lives were satiated
[with] meaning that radiated

quondam royals had mystique,
your wife was yours and was unique.
i often wonder what went wrong
but it's been too dark for much too long.

Said nettle to butterfly, 'welcome back!'
'i remember you when you were black,
bushy and wrinkled, fat and hairy!
hardly a month since last you fed on me!'

'bushy and fat? don't be ridiculous!'
snorted Painted Lady of colouring meticulous,
'but what can one expect of insolence infamous,
just like your hairs, pointy and venomous!'

'don't be so hoity, my young lady',
hummed Urtica dioica, 'I'm not so shady',
'you, on the other hand, have changed your look,
you're like a chameleon or shifty crook!'

'Don't nettle me', said m'lady blushing,
'i'll not be accused of guile or bluffing,
it's you that ought to be of yerself ashamed,
hiding burning-needles in hairs untamed!'

'Each to their own', shrugged the burn-****,
'Don't ask anyone to touch me Harris tweed,
but i'm here for you, to meet your need,
i give you food, I help you breed'.

The butterfly appeared though not to hear,
Engrossed with the nettle's front 'n rear,
Her abdomen bent, spiracles as bow,
She laid her young children, her seed to grow.

'It's not too late, my little young'un,
a little courtesy and manners to learn,
be nice to he who gives you good turn,
'cos it's your eggs i do discern

on underside of my green leaves,
the least you can do is say "how d'you do"',
but butterfly had gone, as succulent beeves
to little brown wren, in beak as he flew.

brittle wax. breaks.
don't whistle in my face.
thin glass shatters,
nerves in tatters

my heart's open wide,
don't know where to hide,
i've cried and i've died,
G-d knows I've tried.

can't go in there,
not where they stare.
don't you feel the pain,
driving me insane?

can't you see the wall
twixt me and ye all?
just let me crawl
where the tears fall.

More than the ripple of a thousand tears
More than the cries of a thousand years
More than oceans of anguish and pain
Of cruciation and torture inhumane
Is the music of the spheres
When G-d draws near His bairn

Horris:
When I was a lad I started a term
As junior clerk to a consultancy firm
But after four days, could work no more
So when no-one looked, I skipped to the door.

Chorus:
When no-one looked, he skipped to the door.

Horris:
I skipped that day with a step so free
That now I am Head of the Queen's Ministry!

Chorus:
He skipped that day with a step so free
That now he is Head of the Queen's Ministry!

Horris:
Through high connections of my family
I was given the post o' graduate trainee.
I wrote an article inventing a quote
And attributed it in earnest to a historian of note.

Chorus:
He attributed it in earnest to a historian of note.

Horris:
I lied so well, they rewarded me,
That now I am Head of the Queen's Ministry!

Chorus:
He lied so well, they rewarded he,
That now he is the Head of the Queen's Ministry!

Horris:
In being such a *** I made such a name
That a leading writer I soon became;
I wore scuffed collars and a hand-me-down suit
For the pass examination at the Institute.

Chorus:
For the pass examination at the Institute.

Horris:
That pass examination did so well for me,
That now I'm Prime Minister of this country!

Chorus:
That pass examination did so well for he,
That now he is Prime Minister of this country!

Horris:
Of journalism I acquired such a grip
That they took me into the partnership.
I used expletives when i got angry
And was accused of racism 'n bigotry

Chorus:
He was accused of racism 'n bigotry.

Horris:
But that kind of tree so suited me,
That now I am the Head of the Queen's Ministry!

Chorus:
That kind of tree so suited he,
That now he's the Head of the Queen's Ministry!

Horris:
I grew so rich that I was bent
to become a member of Parliament.
I was always schmoozing for my party's call,
And never thought of thinking for myself at all.

Chorus:
He never thought of thinking for himself at all.

Horris:
I thought so little, they rewarded me
By making me Head of the Conservative Party!

Chorus:
He thought so little, they rewarded he
By making him Head of the Conservative Party!

Horris:
Now young and old, whoever you may be,
If you want to rise to the top of the tree,
[If your soul isn't fettered to keeping to the facts,
'N you're prepared to engage in questionable acts,]
If you've got few morals and can always keep your cool.
Be careful to be guided by this golden rule.

Chorus:
Be careful to be guided by this golden rule.

Horris:
Just ride roughshod over all 'n sundry,
And you all may be Heads of the Queen's Tories!

Chorus:
Just ride roughshod over all 'n sundry,
And you all may be Heads of the Queen's Tories!

ruled by baboons
governed by a goon
******* by buffoons
every - - - - - - - day!

and if we fume or cuss
fulminate or fuss
they won't talk or discuss
but this is what they say:

Tweet tweet, shush shush,
now now, come come!

the dusk chorus
sing for us
ivory keys
on twigs of trees

heralding
the oncoming
silver ring
of night-time king,

in his velvet robe of black
diamond studded, crystal'd lac,
ere he enters life's arena
they sing the song of ballerina

how she lost the love she yearned for
how she pined, and longed, and burned for,
how she found her sweetheart courter,
how she fell in arms of lover

and as the satin sheet was laid
she lay down beneath his shade,
closed her eyes as love betray'd
secrets of her true knight's blade

adamantine as rock of star,
inflammable with fire bizarre,
soft in ear whispered endearment
as perfection reached fulfilment

then, phoenix from the embers,
slow she rose up as eternal,
as immortal soul remembers
birth of life from youthful kernel

for forever now she'll sing
the notes that form her truelove king
the music of the morning's morn
as new life and breath is born

He dipped a pen into the ink
and let the letters flow
like running a finger down a mink
forming blackbirds in the snow
the liquid flowed in courses deep
betwixt the fibrous path
on either side an ivory heap
as plaster 'tween the lath

the letters had a life their own
glinting in the sun
as shiny beads or poppy seeds
sprinkled on iced bun
and then, as corn, newly sown
choreographed as one
the letters marched, in unison,
as soldiers with a gun

each distinct, they swayed together
as wing compos'd of feather
the harmony of black and white
milk stars on velvet night,
and then, just when, all was right,
they vanished all together,
as all at once, they took to flight
and flew into the ether.

and now, each night, when all is still,
they visit me in my dreams,
those raven-black letters of quill
dance wisdom in moonlight streams
as homing pigeons coming to roost
coo mysteries in the dew
as prancing horses newly hoofed
flashing waves of sea-green hue,

and as young maid new seduced
'neath heavens of sky-blue
where rainbow colours introduce
soft butterflies flying through,
wherein conception, zen-induced,
old friends appear as new
i lend my ear to hear produced
their music i once knew

when pen in hand i sought to spill
the secrets hidden 'n true
of why the very highest hill
is home to lowly shrew
and why from ash beneath the grill
a phoenix wakes anew
and why the soul allows its will
to bivouac in corpse shoe.

plant a tree too close to others
its growth is stifled, development smothered,
it'll wax scrawny, tall and lank,
needing its neighbours to cling to the bank

its roots cannot spread,
its branches are muted,
without anchor or head
smallest gale can uproot it

plant a tree without support
it'll grow awkward, twisted and gaunt,
plant a tree without protection,
it'll be trampled or plagued by infection

but plant a tree with space all round
with support and guidance, staked to the ground,
it''ll grow proud with full formation,
a shelter for humans and bird habitation

tie a horse to cart or hearse
without bit or bridle, reins or headpiece
it''ll run amok, out of control,
subject to whim, race, gallop or stroll.

tie a horse too tight to carriage,
whip with crop without fear of carnage,
it'll suffocate, unable to breathe,
or bristle and flare, simmer and seethe.

but tie with care, treat with sensitivity
it'll reward you with years of activity
it'll enjoy its ride with you
a friend 'n ally till its adieu

smother a child with rules and restrictions
it'll develop maladies and evil addictions,
or else be forever unable to speak,
individuality suppressed, character weak.

treat it with abandon and over-laxity,
it'll never understand the meaning of chastity,
capricious and fickle, as ship without rudder,
there'll be crime 'n disgrace to make Bluebeard shudder

cram the child into class of peers,
without room to breathe, develop in years,
it''ll mature narrow, petty and limited,
easily broken or slanted 'n bigoted.

but guide it with love, with room to develop,
surround it with friends but not to envelop,
show it firmness while broadening horizons
a free spirit with integrity 'twill be till it wizens

tick-tock, tick-tock,
life goes by, it doesn't stop,
tick-tock, tick-tock,
a second of eternity on universe clock

tick-tock, tick-tack,
grab each moment, it won't come back,
tick-tock, tock-tick,
time runs out, all too quick

how do some people
manage with ease
to move in crowds
to do as they please

while others frightened in their skin
timid as rabbits, nerves paper-thin,
socially uneasy, inept and clumsy,
not knowing to smile or maybe curtsy.

how do some people manage it
smile and comment lickety-split
while i, as fetal, curled misfit,
cringe in a corner, waiting to quit.

but perhaps if i their magic had
could mingle 'n linger, take the good and the bad,
i'd be unable to lift up a finger
to write, to muse, as ******* binger.

those nerves that are taut are highly tuned
they feel the sun and they feel the wound
i would not have it any other way
rather inept be with spirit bouquet.

soul sings,
soars cerulean skies
searching, seeking,
attaching ode of awe
to Everlasting One.

when the wicked sprout,
like grass - with fist 'n clout,
when evil-doers flourish,
suffocating all that nourish,
when they fester and canker
like a malignant cancer,
when they bud burgeon and flower,
showing the world their power,
spread their darkness 'n void
their blackened tempestuous rule
it's that they may be destroyed
be swallowed in own cesspool.
for evil self-consumes,
creates its own hell-doom,
its burst of prosper 'n bloom
is to burn in flame and fume,
besmirchment of innocent pure,
will never ever endure.
Light will triumph and prevail
and the depraved will fall and fail.

in penetralia of my heart
lies forbidden lust
that as i grow becomes a part
a victim, naked, trussed,

from time to time i hear it cry
its needs to be heard
but i must flee and let it die
lest my mind be blurred

lest i be ****** into its whirlpool
lest i drown within its nectar,
for at its centre sits laughing ghoul,
soul-collecting spectre

his right hand me beckons near
in left a single spear
with nimrodian face sneers 'n leers
with sly wink, snuffs out fear

yet at its root is strongest yearning
a thirst for immaterial
no doubt the ghoul'll keep returning
'til i embrace ethereal

once upon a time there was a world
with smells and colours and sound
people would watch how roses unfurled
watch the blackbirds pecking the ground

there was sweet silence within the quiet
a place where angels and fairies could dwell
plenty of space for colour to riot,
forget-me-not with the bluebell

there were greens of the spring, gold of the summer,
orange-browns that made the heart sing,
fluttering of birds in wake of newcomer,
swallows and swifts circling on wing

it was a world where the people cared,
heard the heartbeat of mother-nature,
no place for kitschy pop-posts shared
incessant interruptions as leaf's crenature

the so-called prosaic had depth and music
we weren't so clever but men were still true
we lived in harmony with world's acoustic,
before we sloughed the soul's inner view

once there was a world where people connected
not on the screen but in their souls,
where the inner voice was always respected,
people in tune with their inner goals.

i pray and hope we'll still be able
to pass this on to the next generation
else a world, tottering, unstable,
has orchestrated its own cessation

i spied Time a long way off
bent and stooped on wooden staff
his beard too long for me to see
a figure on skyline boundary

i shouted to him at top o' my voice
but never dreamt he'd hear
it seemed i really had no choice
but travel through the years

the years they took their toll on me
the pain, the hurt, the misery,
but when i bent my head to bear
i felt no injury

at times like that i felt the joy
unspoilt timeless eternity
in that moment to enjoy
lack of personal enmity

as time stood still, beyond this world,
a taste of time to come,
then i'd forget that old man knurled
over staff o' mourning hum

but recently he seems much closer
not so nearly stooped or bent
could it be i'm getting older
approaching that wondrous event?

he winks to me and smiles assent
his beard flowing in the winds
patiently, he waits advent
o' when he'll grant me my wings.

he doffs his cap and waves to me
allowing me to see
the path i've trod, the misery
was all so necessary

Speak soft words
Your soul to Soul
Whisper. You're heard.
Your part in Whole.

There's a little bit of G-d in you
That's feeling the pain, the cry in you
Listen to its cry, too,
Feel its pain, and cry too.

as the waves of the sea
hitting wharf rhythmically
as the suckling of the babe
past midnight hour on astrolabe
is the cooing of the dove
in the silence of alcove

like the call of the cuckoo
as sweet spring breaks forth anew
as the hoot of tawny owl
'midst the canine's nightly howl
is the cooing of the dove
in the silence of alcove

as an angel drawing near
whispering secrets in my ear
as the mysteries of world beyond
juxtaposed to burning pond
is the cooing of my dove
in the silence of alcove

Knock, knock! - 'WHO'S THERE?!',
{I fairly shouted, I do declare,
but then I cowered back, quivering in my chair
all a-shiver like a shawl o' prayer,
for there arose outta thin air
sepulchral aura everywhere,
from eyes blood-red, demonic glare,
to sallow skin and pasty hair,
a curious charisma that bade 'beware!'}

ooh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare
{here bowed he low with flourish and flair}
I've been sending you messages all through the year,
all winks 'n hints that I'm to appear,

{I'd have mustered strength then 'n there,
bellowed, "I adjure you, spirit of air,
be thee fiend, or phantom fair,
daytime vision or strange nightmare,
get thee hither to place elsewhere!", (- or "banish thee I to world nether!")
but dread demeanor 'n awesome stare
caught my tongue; I could not dare}

Come on, now, don't start to fret,
nothing's over - well, not quite yet!
{he masked a chuckle that gave me a turn,
then continued nonchalant with little concern}

hmm, you've been dilatory all your life,
i don't expect anything better now,
I've brought me tool, me carving-knife,
brandishing grandiose blade before my brow

{then in undertone I could scarcely hear,
whispered grinning into my ear,}
don't take offense, don't take umbrage,
all it takes is the slightest scritch!

'Wow, what a fine specimen, a work-of-art',
I said loudly, trying to sound smart,
'looks the epitome of a cutlass' blade.
Bet that can cut through man or shade!'

Why, of-course it can! in jaunty tone
death replied (with air of sensibility),
there's well nigh nowt that this can't own,
here held he it high for me to see

as off he went, waxing vociferous,
recounting tales o' strength so vigorous,
unending litany of victims passed,
until for breath paused he at last

well, the rest, say they, is history,
as i made rash grab for immutable edge
and, unabashed, lopped his belfry,
fell'd with one swoop, i do thee pledge!

there once was a cow that gave cash
from its udder - came out in a hash,
said farmer, "that's strange
she don't give no change
but i'll add that to the rest o' me stash!"

I wondered how i'd got so old
How the time had gone
How my bones had gotten cold
Before my time had come

I wondered why my eyes they flickered
Before the written word
Why it seemed my mind was liquored
And my vision blurred

I wondered why the steps had grown
steeper in incline
why they creak'd, me joints and bones,
and moved like slow bovine

I wondered who that old man was
with grey whiskers and goatee
a venerable Santa Claus
that winked from mirror to me

then i recalled the passing years
i'd left my youth behind
in veil of laughter and of tears
and now decrepit mind

so i'll paint a smile on senility
pretend i'm glad 'n fine
i'll drink to youth's virility
and close eyes to my decline