let's do it, i said
i'm a bona fides reprobate
let's call up the dead
arouse Mother Fate

we dressed ourselves purple
like butterflies and birds
sat in a circle
said all the words

in mix of drama and derring-do
we painted a pentagon in electric blue
lit red candles and turned down the light
and waited and waited the whole --- night

then just before dawn
as i stifled a yawn
as if in a blur
i saw something stir

at first I thought
'twas imagination
but then i was sure
it was a visitation

the hairs stood up on the back of my neck
my heart beat faster as i thought 'what the ----'
my arms 'n legs froze as if inert,
though all o' my senses were really alert

inky, metallic, with glinting eyes
hooded, unworldly, as if taken by surprise
air of sinister, darker affairs,
unaware of all our fixated stares

it came on slowly, unsure at first,
then started forward, as if coerced
as if beckoned by unseen power,
by spirits o' nefarious witching hour

black and hardened were its wings
fixed on its back like two locked springs
a mouth vacant with open pincer
with an odd click like meat-mincer

bamboozled by the circle of candles
the black anthropoid walked around in angles
traced the floor as if driven berserk
the peremptory beetle with fastidious legwork

a factoid known by a pitiful few
beetles are attracted to colour light blue
and when aided by a scented taper
are apt to go on a pre-dawn caper

One ray brightens a thousand mirrors,
One sun lights a thousand lights,
One sea feeds a thousand rivers,
One bad 'un makes thousand blight.

One kind word illuminates world,
As lighthouse, or banner, newly unfurled,
One mean word or palaver
Drapes the universe in balaclava.

One good deed begets another,
and that other has a brother,
and so the goodness will multiply
to rid the world of sorrow 'n sigh

Let's quench our own selfish nature
By realising we're all G-d's creation
let everyone be humanity's saviour
before we cause our own cessation

Tender green shoot
Carelessly crushed
Reckless, underfoot
parents that rushed

Providence, miracle,
sapling survives,
its smile lyrical
humanity revives

forever scarred
innocent childhood
memories marred
charred firewood

bloom it bears
with full apology
hiding its wares
a damaged psychology

long fingers from the shadow
grasp at him from behind,
tentacles, voices, eyes that grow,
haunt his day and mind

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.

What shall we do with the child so wild?
How do we tame his flame 'n fire?
What shall we do with the child so quiet?
How do we allay his disquiet?

What do we do with our child so proud,
Strutting around with a spirit unbowed?
How do we deal with our child so vile,
Our delinquent juvenile?

What shall we do with our child, the clown,
Makes his class roar but his teacher frown?
What shall we do with our child, the boaster,
Who proclaims his prowess like a theatrical poster?

Plant a kiss on the wildness,
Whilst encouraging the calm,
Praise 'n embrace the shyness,
Pointing out his bonhomme.

Esteem 'n treasure the lordliness,
Give it a place of safety,
Love 'n welcome the vileness,
Whilst training his sensitivity.

Hug and adore the childness,
Like a jewel, the swagger,
Direct them with wiseness,
With acceptance, not a dagger.

Kiss the frog and watch it change,
An angel prince devoid of rage,
The sleeping princess shall awaken,
Before you, your golden maiden.

it's no fun to hear my bones creak
feel my back give way
here and there a twinge and squeak
as i climb stairway

chorus:
pass the WD-40 spray
lubricate my joints
if you take my aches away
you'll earn some extra points

there's a rainstorm in the air
grandmother used to say
as she'd sink into her chair
her legs giving way

chorus:
pass the WD-40 spray
lubricate my joints
if you take my aches away
you'll earn some extra points

no denying, i feel it coming
Sir Age is knock a-knocking
impatiently his fingers strumming
on me under-stocking

chorus:
pass the WD-40 spray
lubricate my joints
if you take my aches away
you'll earn some extra points

there's little fun in getting weak
but we can't turn back the clock
so instead turn other cheek
and hope my jaw won't lock

chorus:
pass the WD-40 spray
lubricate my joints
if you take my aches away
you'll earn some extra points.

rhythmic patter
galloping hoofs
hypnotic natter
rain drops on roof

clippety-cloppety,
the stallions speed
full velocity,
as nature decreed,

faster and faster
wildness its master
swift pitter patter,
horse-shoes chatter

now rain has ceased
and so has the beast,
victorious equine
reached finish-line

Dip your brush in crimson letters,
Add a dab of red-gold blush,
Paint a landscape of upsetters,
Those who need a soul to crush.

Those of hollow form of flesh
Those whose soul has left 'n fled
As they seek out weak to thresh
Till last drop of blood has bled

Here a sphere o' fire setting
'Midst a blood-hued sky,
There the haunting silhouetting
Tree with branches high.

Grasping, scratching air ephemeral,
Swaying to the sounds of death,
Knocking at the gates empyreal,
Clutching at pure babies' breath.

The dead not-living swarm like dusk
Crushing sweetest sprout
Winnowing ripe corn from husk
Winnowing the life-force out

Hear the hunted sheep begetting
Howl and wail and cry,
Watch the darting bats bloodletting
As Lord Life slips by.

Covered by dark guise of nature,
Everlasting bides his time
Safe as no nomenclature
Can guess his pantomime

A drop 'n a splash
Ripples awake
Thoughts unhash
Poetry make

Pluck a heartstring
Reminisce
draw a ring
round sad and bliss

make a target
draw your bow
shoot your arrow
let rhyme grow

there's music in rhyme,
music in time,
music that plants
eternity twixt chime

poetry is mystery
older than history
its prose is timeless,
the voice of sweet silence.

one day a bee came to a flower
tickled stamens in pollen-shower
unbeknown, within pistill,
began a fruit of tree distill

And after many years gone-by,
that fruit's seed had formed new tree
with leaves and flowers and branches high
and plentifold nectar for busy bee.

One day a man performs a deed
a deed has fruit, good goodness breeds,
and from that little point of light
will blossom stars to transform night

one little act may bear a sun
that may henceforth be the one
to turn humanity to change course
to fill the world with new force

smile to a stranger,
be kind at home,
you may be a changer
that change will roam

remember it's not just about you
it's how after many years are through
your act will have coloured in ways untold
the lives of many, a million-fold.

If all the world were monochrome,
black and white like a funeral home,
layers of grey of different shades,
gloom and doom of deepest hades

if colour was something you read of in book,
an out-world experience of an LSD hook,
then all at once someone switched on the light
and wow what a difference before you in sight

how your spirits would lift as you looked round in wonder
at the greens and the mauves and the blues over yonder,
the bricks of the wall in shades of red coral,
the yellows and limes of the willow and laurel,
faces of scarlet, of softness of pink,
depth and complexity of a master craft's ink,
what a wonderful world that would be to be in,
aye --- a wonderful it is, to be in.

Behold on high, a palace tall,
Shimmering fire, ethereal wall,
Far above, in heavenly sphere,
Peace, tranquillity. All is clear.

Angelic lights beckon close,
Radiating energy, warmth, compose,
Awe and wonder fore celestial Soul
Loving kindness, life's true rose.

Beloved One, above and below,
Eternal kissing yon nightly glow,
Lift the curtain, remove Your veil,
Good God, guide us in our travail.

he placed his hands together,
bowed his head in prayer,
as fingers stretched to aether,
bound by invisible tether

he felt his silent lips
touched by fingertips,
as his heart soared on high,
and words filled the sky

In the grey dawn, a crow's call,
Harsh, unbidden, as prophet's cry,
Foretelling unspoken shadows.

On the ancient oak, a sentinel,
Gnarled branches whispering past legends,
Roots clawing the shrouded future.

'Neath the ground, secrets stir
Through the wind's steady howling,
A presage of what's to come.

twisted, gnarled, bent he stood,
ebony brown, of burled wood,
humble creature of tortured form,
hillside weathered through life of storm

battered by the highland gales
that swept the sweet and sunny dales,
contorted by the skies' assails
that hit and pounded as wind to sails

crushed, not broken, zoetic substance
gave new meaning to reluctance
as it withstood those blasts of dread
that left its brothers broken 'n dead

i lent against its ancient bark
to hear its secret of immortality
how to survive when all is dark
when you be victim of brutality

i heard its voice in rustled leaf,
in soft breeze and zephyr,
perchance the whisper of forest nymph
or murmur of the satyr

its voice was as a swaying sheaf,
its song was joy and not of grief,
its message true, profound and brief,
shibboleth that is nature's motif

it whispered of that low, sweet root,
from which all heavenly virtues shoot,
"The bending low before the brute
enabled me give forth my fruit".

ever seen a restless lion,
impatient, antsy, a lion on-edge,
roaring at his bars of iron,
longing for the rocky ledge

yearning for the arid savanna
the sweet smell of savage hunt
the scuffle with the young hyaena,
the vanquished's final grunt

ever seen the tired ape
the depressed orang-outang
lying captive, a worn-out cape
benumbed from all pain or pang

lost all hope of hanging branches
the overgrown Amazon marshes
forgotten the delights of the wild
the call of tribe and his sister's child

ever seen a prisoner's despair
locked away from all society
his loss of self-worth and self-care
his state of mental inebriety

once-gregarious reduced to staring
never hears the music blaring
a listless, languid, brainless zombie
outside world inane cryptography

ever seen your mate in club
your chum-friend at the local pub
smiling, laughing, without a care,
taking part in truth-or-dare

beneath the outer charm and suaveness
calmness of a Greek Adonis
lies a restless, confounded soul,
prisoner with no parole

lies an intelligence rattling the bars
peering out through aged scars,
muffled, muted by cruelest medicine,
fated eternal jail denizen

longs to escape to outside world,
break the bars, flag unfurled,
but as those captives in the zoo
has lost all hope of living like you.

in the halls of culture,
in the corridors of art,
(where concealed rites sepulture
are made on human heart)

in the schools of science,
the shrines of self-reliance,
(where they pay obeisance
to their paying clients)

in cathedral of academia,
the high churches of learning,
(where publication media
gains profession's earning)

in all these lobbies of power,
the chambers of government,
beneath the gilt and flower,
beneath false guise of betterment,

beneath the charm and splendour,
beneath the language tender,
there lies secret agenda,
for advance of pretender

there, steps are made of people,
and mountains from the crowds
and on the tops a steeple
pierces the greyest clouds

"how great am i
to look from high,
to rule the masses
from the sky"

but in heaven there's different plan
a different way to look at man
the steeple on the top is gone
all persons divine, one echelon

one step on man is a step on G-d,
and he who ruled, on Him he trod,
I little envy the position
of he who reached his ambition

to be the king of the castle
to tread 'pon spirits astral
to be a spiritual rascal
to attenuate the bashful

'the meek will inherit the earth'
of Psalms, thirty-seven,
is not a verse of mirth
but a law of heaven

for there'll come a time,
so saith this rhyme,
that deceit'll implode
before sacred code

E ndless wisdom of no bounds
H ewed space, no light, no sound
Y ielded self yet self surrounds
H eart pulsating life abound

Y ou see the end in the beginning
H iding death in the living
V oid shapen through Your giving
H ome to Heaven through forgiving

A ir and fire, water, earth,
D eath 'n life, endless rebirth,
N ature nurturing name of worth
Y earns in You to find safe berth

asking why
i was born
in this century
the year
the day
the family
is like questioning eternity

why does evil make noise 'n protest
whilst goodness tiptoes by unnoticed?
why is bad raucous and loud
but good hides itself in a crowd?

why is G-d's voice stiller than water,
a silent whisper, caress in the ether,
whilst devil's beguile persists till the slaughter
as constant chime, incessant bleeper?

It's the same reason that gold need not shout,
to tell you its worth, prestige and clout,
why a gem or diamond is entombed in coal,
and sought after 'n quarried from deepest She'ol.

Why speech is silver and silence is golden,
why pride seeks fanfare and sin is bolden,
whilst holiness shies away from publicity
as from pernicious poison 'n toxicity

it's the secret of fruit, the light in the shell,
the clapper and chain in the hand-bell,
the spirit and soul, alive and well,
that animates fibre, muscle and cell

it's the secret of light travelling faster than sounds
though laser power confounds and astounds
in short, if you're quiet you'll understand
the secret that upholds seas, heaven and land.

the competition starts as you're born
its championship's not foresworn,
the gun is fired on very first morn
the finish-line reached as others mourn

on the way you'll find much to nettle
there to prove your grit 'n mettle
if moral compass's in fine fettle
you'll emerge stronger, as quenched metal

if you fall on the way, help is at hand,
that too is innate, divinely planned,
it's human nature, you'll understand,
just keep on, maintain your stand

as best can be, that's all that's required,
try not to look if you're being admired,
do as your soul is heavenly inspired,
until you're tired, all strength retired

then soul ascends with all it's acquired,
the bruises of life, as medals, attired,
and as the spirit is gently expired,
G-d whispers, 'yes, it's this I desired'.

rat-a-tat-tat, the metal annihilator
taught our ears its foreign tongue,
in the hands of violator
takka takka's sung

sowing death and violation
hungry for the mutilation
of a child, of a nation,
brat-a-tat spells termination

it was the third primordial sinning,
first was greed, then came envy,
as long as greed 'n envy's winning,
third is sure to make his entry

bloodshed with green mama, jealousy,
goaded by lust, spouse, father, king,
as one, begetters with their progeny,
takka takka sing

altogether, takka takka takka,
baby, child, mamma 'n pappa,
in the name of Phi Theta Kappa
takka takka sing

i heard them before i saw them
cries of geese cutting the skies
at once natural, at once inhuman,
denuded nature with no disguise

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

We crave recognition
Because it's our mission
To gain admission
To G-d's acquisition

The problem starts
When outside our hearts
We look to the charts
Others to outsmart

Peer within
You'll soon begin
To know wherein
Lies true linchpin

Of the worth of your deeds
Sort the flowers from the weeds
To grow the seeds
That goodness breeds

Then, will no longer
Ye seek yonder
Desire 'n hanker
Respect 'n honour

True satiation
Comes from good occupation
Self-examination
G-dly communication

With self-respect
You'll not be subject
To feeling neglect
From peers' reject.

With behaviour exemplary,
Love and empathy,
You'll experience redemptory -
Life's true nectary

what was that you said
a minute dear, me hearin' aid ...
your father? he's long dead
****'d in the last air-raid

aye! the war, the blitz
scared us out of our wits
what's that you say?
do i remember D-day?

' Course I do, remember it good,
like the rations, the stamps for food,
come again, my sweet, me hearing's bad,
aye, they got him alright, your granddad

orange-carts for seats we had in them days,
yer uncle, a milkman, would bring home his wage,
two shillin' a week, was considered good,
well, it'd keep us in bread and yer fire-wood

were we happy, you ask?
don't make me laugh,
with a pint and a half
beer in the cask

there was nought to keep our spirits down,
think o' the joy when I found a half-crown,
spent on baccy my pipe for the puffin',
them were the days, we didn't lack nuffin'.

Risorius is a muscle in your face,
a key to happiness and to grace,
It helps pull the angle of the mouth
to smile at jokes or sommat uncouth

situated in the space
twixt mouth corner and your jaw,
on the side of your sweet face
to produce grin or guffaw.

so when next you smile or deride,
though latter's to be used most sparing,
remember that muscle at your side,
and wonder at His creation unerring

the robin was my friend
pecked me on my shoulder
watched me garden tend
perched upon the boulder

watched me as i tripped that day
running down the street
watched me as my heart ran gay
oblivious to the heat

watched me as the stars went out
turning life to grey
watched me wince from ache and gout
as night enveloped day

the robin is my friend
he pecks me on my shoulder
it's time to spread your wings to wend
stop getting any older

Crackly prickles,
Sharp as razors,
Teeth like little
Alligators.

Black thorn,
Stalk dried,
Bush forlorn,
Flowers died.

And then, Spring angel,
A whisper gave,
As in a fable,
A magic wave.

From dried twig,
Emerged a bud,
Within the sprig,
Elixir blood.

A hint of green,
Edged with scarlet,
The garden queen,
A youthful varlet.

Bedecked in emerald,
Gives haughty bow,
Once naked 'n bald,
Now jewel-filled bough.

With nod 'n light wink,
Royalty with diadems,
With sunrise pink,
Citrines, pearl gems.

Soul of my rose,
She lives on eternal,
Forever she grows,
Ever youthful 'n vernal.

The soul of your rose,
Lies hidden and waiting,
As poetry prose,
As life pulsating.

what is this that grips my senses
its magic grasp inveigling,
the mauves, the reds, as blood of ******,
as fairest ****** beguiling

depths of salmon orange,
the deepest, velvet pinks,
bid me pay them homage
as Pharaoh to his Sphinx

i gaze in heartfelt wonder
and touch her deepest secrets,
scented lightning, silent thunder,
quenching soul with her streamlets

of ever transient virility
of flower of fertility,
her arrows o' Cupidian agility
blushing unashamed fecundity

words cannot paint your beauty,
or describe eternal mystery,
they cannot do their duty
unlock thine vernal divinity

sagacious soul
spirit with goal
longs to ascend and unite

disorientated drunk
beat as salt junk
daylight as dark night

with left-handed shove
and right handed love
I'll mollify corporeal sprite

then as sweet-heart and darling
the dove with the starling
shall consummate heavenly rite

together as one
G-d's favourite son
shall shine the Infinite's light

the world once more
transparent door
to Love that is hidden and bright

more than the sun
at height of its run
transforming all pain and all blight

to peace everlasting
passionate soul's asking
the light of the day in the night

Eyes black,
Watching my back,
Gun acock,
Face a rock.

Oh, so gracious,
To friends, loquacious,
Bowing deeply,
Ever so meekly.

Words sebaceous,
Ever vivacious,
Smiling sweetly,
"I am .. uniquely.. "

But, spouse salacious,
Being-mendacious,
Do you not know
What I undergo?

So fallacious,
Power-voracious,
Flirtatious, audacious,
Make us or break us.

In grey silence, time stands watch,
Sentinels from bygone era,
Granite tombs, stannite wombs,
Final cradles, carved by hands.

Resting places
Devoid of breath,
Lives in cases,
Embraced -- by death.

Dreams and hopes of yesteryears
In cold repose,
Excite and hate, love and fears,
In deep earth's hold.

Within, all light of memories dimmed,
The sun's soft rays a fleeting hymn,
All murmured love long since winged.

And o'er the grey of beasts unbent,
Echoes life's lament.
Bitter tears of empty years,
Cold stone that no-one hears.

-
Based on 'Oranges and Lemons'

Lozenges from heaven
Says minister of depression

It'll cover the shillings
Deficit in our billings

That's coz I'm brainy
Says administrator daily

We're not in a ditch
Never had a glitch

We're in years o' plenty
Since year of 1920

We'll grow and grow
I've always said so

[I'm in the know
With doctorate to show]

Here comes a whopper
To chase you to bed

And here comes a scandal
To chop off your head

Sea's a-coming as a fountain
When she comes,
As the snow melts off snow-mountain
When she comes,
Sea's a-coming that's for certain,
Coming as a fountain,
Coming as a fountain
When she comes.

Singin’ “Aye Aye Yippee Yippee Aye”,
Singin’ “Aye Aye Yippee Yippee Aye”,
Singin’ “Aye Aye Yippee, Aye Aye Yippee”,
“Aye Aye Yippee Yippee Aye”.

Sea'll be coming with great forces
When she comes,
As she over-floods her courses
When she comes,
With the governments' endorses,
There'll be floods from all her sources,
Floods from all her sources when she comes.

Singin’ “Aye Aye Yippee Yippee Aye”,
Singin’ “Aye Aye Yippee Yippee Aye”,
Singin’ “Aye Aye Yippee, Aye Aye Yippee”,
“Aye Aye Yippee Yippee Aye”.

Oh, we'll all be overheated
When she comes,
Oh, the land will be defeated
When she comes,
Oh, we'll all go underwater,
we'll all go underwater,
all go underwater
When she comes.

Singin’ “Aye Aye Yippee Yippee Aye”,
Singin’ “Aye Aye Yippee Yippee Aye”,
Singin’ “Aye Aye Yippee, Aye Aye Yippee”,
“Aye Aye Yippee Yippee Aye”.

There'll be no more pink Bahamas
When she comes,
No more margaritas
When she comes,
There'll be no more margaritas
On the pink sands of Bahamas,
On the pink sands of Bahamas
When she comes.