Wednesday, 30 July 2014

I was merely a friend


                                            Image from Funscrape.com

Tears glistened like stars on her cheeks.
I knew it would be this way.
The light no more in her eyes
It was more like the sun setting
Slowly over the sea where the waves
Sparkled on the retreating tide

She confided in me that it was over
All I could remember was saying
He was a lucky man to find her
And she chuckled with happiness
When I said that, not remembering
She always made bad choices

While I talked quietly to her
And listened to all her dreams
She never saw the desire
I thought flashed like beacons
Animating my own face
As I was merely a friend

Someone to talk to
To wipe away her tears
To tenderly pick her up
Brush the hair from her face
Gently kiss away the hurt
What a farce this was

It never entered her head
I would like to kiss her nose
And stroke her cheek
Then hold her pretty hands
Lay my head between her breasts
To hear her beating heart

Monday, 28 July 2014

Mad Mouse

                                     Mad Mouse, Adelaide Show before demolition

It was Show time
“Daddy, Daddy, take me please”
She was the youngest

Of our three children
The others took their rides alone
So I went with her

While my wife wisely
went to the dog pavilion,
plants then cooking

Oh what fun we had
Hall of mirrors, the ghost train
Candy floss and showbags

Money was invested
in producing happy smiles
Then her plea was, “Dad?

Can we go on this?”
Pointing to the Mad Mouse ride
High above the ground

So her pleading looks
Lead me to the ticket gate
No turning back now

Ushered to the front
Single seats for each other
“I’m behind you Dad”

She squealed with delight
As I had the drivers seat
but without control

And soon off we went
Climbing, climbing, round the bend
Down, down at a speed

That drove my eyeballs
Into the back of my head
My steering useless

On and on it went
Up and down and round about
I was so relieved

When we stopped at last
And rejoined the family
On unsteady legs

Sunday, 27 July 2014

Just an exchange



“Hello” she said
saying my name,
looking at me
then lowering her eyes.
She knew I liked her.
I watched her fingers
as she worked away.
She seemed but little
more than a child
exuding a shy sexuality.
“Coffee?” she asked,
in her adult husky voice
I nodded. “And cake?”
Her next question.
She knew the answer
It was a gentle tease
The barrier between us
was not just the counter.
We were both out of reach
of each other.
She wouldn’t tell
her boyfriend.
I wouldn’t tell my wife.
Just an interchange
that made both our lives
more beautiful.


Saturday, 26 July 2014

What love really is

Oh you
Precious one
How can I save you
From the senseless and cruel?
Their thrill to hunt you down
I would fill your empty heart
Reveal myself to you, a friend
I'll not dabble with your feelings
But walk that hallowed ground
What skill, what art do I need to learn?
My blast of true affection will surely win you
To prove I am not shallow like the others
Those that have stained and betrayed your trust
You have had your whack of all that hurt
I want to be the centre of your life
To help you unfold, to bloom
To have a great purpose
To give you hope and
Know what true love
Really is

Friday, 25 July 2014

I know of a place

I know of a place
More precious than diamonds
Where happiness rules

I lie in your lap
My head blessed with such softness
And warmth of our love

So I kiss your nose
Whisper sweet nothings to you
And feel your heart beat

We're but one person
Touching to make sure we're there
Compatible us

So the angels sing
And love’s sweet elixir calms
My poor troubled mind

We'll meet up again
One day, oh so very soon
But will you know me?

My voice is husky
These hands will not stop shaking
As I stumble on

I am greyer now
I walk with a limp and may
not recall your name

Wednesday, 23 July 2014

She's not perfect


I so love this girl
Liberal with her favors
Cute as a button

Excuse her language
Profanities are common
So lips are best kissed

We get on so well
But she’s a bit quarrelsome
No, she’s not perfect

Monday, 21 July 2014

Starlight Fairies



I heard some laughing
The tinkling of little bells
sounding in my ear

It was insistent
They would not leave me alone
those forest fairies

Chattering away
they had come into my home
in the dead of night

Banging on the pots
hiding behind the curtains
waking me in fright

“Bluebell is that you?”
But all could hear was chuckling
they were teasing me

Stumbling on my feet
I chased them from my bedroom
then I heard thunder

A mighty wind blew
the Fairy Queen burst on the scene
whilst sprinkling stardust

“Bluebell, you were told”
She uttered shaking the house
“To keep this man safe”

Bluebell and her friends
hung their heads while feigning shame
knowing that I laughed

“Do forgive them please
What human would not be pleased?
to have them at home”

With a wink, she smiled
“They must be punished for this
and must clean the house”

I looked at Bluebell
She shrugged her shoulders and
flapped her tiny wings

When the Queen was gone
Bluebell came up and whispered
“Oh, this won’t take long”

She took out her wand
Spun it round over her head
House tidy at once

“Good now that is done
Can we play in the garden?”
She smiled happily

Fairies are great fun
They’re good at gardening too
Wouldn't you want one?

Postcard "Starlight" by Margaret Tarrant in authors collection

Saturday, 19 July 2014

So paradise was lost



It was a magic place
Where words were few
And creatures ran free
Where plants thrived
And natures passions
Bloomed in the forest
Without the hang of fear
Here love swarmed free
And sweet nectar kisses
Touched without guile
Joyous jumping young
The sweet hum of bees
All existed in this place
While love ruled long
But man came storming in
So paradise was lost

Image from www.skywalkerdesign.deviantart.com

I look into her eyes



I came close to her
To touch those pretty fingers
And breathe in her sighs

I wish I was wise
Ignore the scent that lingers
Not to tell her lies

But I am spellbound
For she works her magic on me
Strange! She loves me too

I look into her eyes
We smile and laugh together
Until the winter comes

Wednesday, 16 July 2014

In Night's Kiss



Stars they talk to me
I am a creature of the night
Darkness is my friend

The moon watches on
For we are both nocturnal
She approves of me

Shadows dance around
Some find them fraught with danger
Grimly seek the light

No one sees me here
The shades of my past are safe
Bathing in night's kiss

I hear the whispers
Some think me honorable
Others fear my tread

Image from 1hdwallpapers.com

Saturday, 12 July 2014

Greet me once more


The light of my life is gone
A lacklustre world eclipsed
By that cold shadow of loss
I manufacture anew
A strange unknown loneliness 
Oh! what hard hike up those stairs
To a cold empty bedroom
In which once there was laughter
Your side of the bed now bare
A company of silence
Shot through like an express train
From a dark empty platform
Where is your pretty smile
And warmth of companionship?
My throat is dry choked with grief
And eyes are wet with sorrow
When will I see you again?
A thousand years would be fine
Knowing you cheeky laughter
Would greet me once more
To honor my side, my love

image found at misuteru.deviantart.com

Friday, 11 July 2014

The Bluebell Fairy and me


It was almost dark
I stumbled through the forest
Searching for the path

There in a clearing
A small figure was standing still
So she turned to me

She could not escape
Legs akimbo, hand on hips
Strong and beautiful

She whispered to me
Very bold for a fairy
“I know you, don’t I?”

“I’ve been here before”
I said. An owl hooted so
his call confirmed it

“Want to come with me?”
I nodded so she jumped up
onto my shoulder

“I’ll show you the way”
Took me to the old oak tree
Tight hold on my ear

There in the clearing
All the fairies had gathered
in preparation

“The queen is coming”
I nodded, smiled, then asked her
“What is your name?”

“My name is Bluebell”
As she flew from my shoulder
and said quietly

“You may sit just there”
Pointing to an old tree stump
“Guests must be quiet”

The dancing began
Soon the fairy queen arrived
And then looked my way

So I bowed my head
And celebrations resumed
It was the solstice

Bluebell often came
She whispered in my big ear
and brought me nectar

Before dawn’s new light 
The queen sent for me to come
“You’re welcome human”

“Help us if you can
Do not cut this forest down
for it is our home”

With that the birds sang
Affirmation to that plea
It was a new day

Image from Margaret Tarrant postcard

Wednesday, 9 July 2014

The odd couple



It’s eerie loving you
They couldn’t say we’re alike
Summer and winter

How guarded we are
Like two dogs sniffing at first
Before bite or play

We talk, profess love
Translucent conversation
Like spider and mate

Life is exiting
No, I can’t do without you
But can this love last?

Image found at www.dogsforfun.com

Tuesday, 8 July 2014

When Spring came (Dum Tales 26)

                                 Where Dum found the hollow stones

The relations between the cave people and those that lived in huts was friendly as they visited each other and exchanged their individual knowledge on how to survive. Throughout the winter the cave people coped very well continuing to hunt animals and fish share them with the others.

So it was in spring that Dum and Yum saw how the others fed themselves by growing food close to them without having to search for it from afar. They dug for tubers under the ground and were constantly keeping watch on their plants to prevent hungry animals coming to steal the food from under their noses.

Yum established her own garden with the help of Dong but realised that it would be better to be in a larger community where there was someone on watch all the time.

Dum however now that it was safe to travel through their neighbours land followed the coast far from their home sometimes with Grunt but really preferring to go by himself. Grunt in his mind could not see as well as he could and this was illustrated when some hours from the cave they rounded a headland and came to a pile of granite rocks worn into shapes by the elements over thousands of years.

Dum rested there while Grunt fidgeted not seeing what Dum could. Dum remembered the grinding stone that he had made for Yum to powder the seeds they gathered and looking at these huge rocks his mind started imagining what else could be achieved.

He found a small hollowed rock that fitted into his basket that he slung over his back and took it home with him. There he toyed with the stone with pieces of wood and twine until he had fastened them together. He then fixed two wooden shafts to the spindle he had made that went through the hole in the stone. He found that he could place a very heavy weight on the shafts and lift them and push them along on the stone wheel because he was not carrying much of the load because the wheel was.

While he was wondering how to make it more secure, as it wobbled with a heavy load, Yum came along with the children. She went up to him and touched him in affection. She was smiling as she looked at him and pointed to the crude barrow he had made. “I am glad I am your wife Dum”.

Dum looked back at her nodding with agreement. She smoothed her hand over her tummy; “There will soon be an extra mouth to feed. You do your work and I do mine.”  She paused and then said “I think we should move to the village where Song lives. There are more of them and I will feel safer inside one of the huts there. Song told me that she advised the men there that you would be useful to them. I think they wanted this all along when they learned what you had done.”

                     Dum's wheel and ax (image found at www.johnlund.com)

Saturday, 5 July 2014

The Sandman



My candle had gone out
I was filled with terror
Hairs stuck up from my arms
It was the time of ghosts
Rain poured down outside
There was a knock on the door
My heart beat and blood curdled
I peered through the window
A ragged man’s there in a cape
Warily I opened the door
What an image he presented
Old as time itself
“Are you ready?” He said
I’ve come on a mission”
“I have been good”
I said as I turned my back.
He laughed, “It’s not that simple
It’s time to go up that hill”
He pointed above him
To a dark and misty hill
“You’ve deserved your rest”
I slowly closed my eyes
And murmured
“All right Daddy”
He grasped me firmly
I remembered nothing more

Image from Flickr.com


Friday, 4 July 2014

Dead man's reach



Dead bodies floating
So they called it Dead Man’s Reach
The tide ebbed and flowed

The ferryman sighed
T’was  his job to retrieve them
They drifted downstream

From the tidal mill
Deserted for years and years
Now busy again!

He puffed on his pipe
Grappling hook at the ready
The tide on the turn

“Hoi! Take me across”
Said the stranger at the quay
He took the man’s coin

“Don’t the preacher moan?”
Words said by the shrouded man
“He’s got work enough”

“So you set them free
To feed those hungry fishes
And get thee to bed”

So business slacked off
The ferryman slept well
Gold coin in the pot

Image from www.i-mockery.com

Wednesday, 2 July 2014

I plaited your hair



Should I divulge this
Such insignificant truth
That tortures my heart?

How we laughed when young
Kids playing in innocence
Two peas in a pod

I cuddled your dolls
Then we took the dog for a walk
And wore your pink dress

I plaited your hair
Inseparable like twins
I dream of you still

We splashed in the pool
And there were no heartbreaks then
Such halcyon days

I now read you’re wed
Who is that “childhood sweetheart”?
I thought it was me!

Am I forgotten
Have you buried me deep down
In this godless world?


Image from www.shutterstock.com

Tuesday, 1 July 2014

The Return Visit (Dum Tales 25)


                        Wild Turnip

After the visitors had gone Dum and the other men of the cave tribe discussed what the other tribe had said and their enthusiasm to share each others knowledge. Some men were wary thinking it was a trap, merely a pretence to assess the cave people’s strengths and weaknesses.

Dum merely shook his head and said. “I expect for some time now we have been sending signals to them with the smell of our meat being cooked on the fire. They have concentrated on harvesting fruit and vegetables but this does not fill their stomachs in winter. They are right we could learn from each other or better still trade with them.

Later that evening Yum wanted to know what the men had decided to do. Yum could see him smile in what little light was left as they prepared to sleep.

“I said I would visit them with you to show that we have no guile but trust them. When they heard that others said they wanted to come too. But I think it should be a just a small party and we should take a gift to thank them for their offer.”

Yum laughed, “Will you take them a basket filled with gifts?”

She could just see him nodding so she reached up to him and pulled him down to lay beside her. “Do you think they will let us meet Song?”

Dum merely said “You must tell me all that you have told her, for she may have already suggested to her tribe what we have done and what they might expect from us.”

A few days later Dum, Yum carrying Lara and two other men set off to visit the other tribe with gifts to exchange. Wara their boy stayed at home with Dong.

They took some time to reach the other tribes settlement. They were guided by Yum telling Dum where they had met Song before and by the smoke from fires that could be seen in the sky. The other two men followed warily.

Clearly that had been sighted as soon a group of villagers came to meet them and escorted to the village. A level area had been cleared simple timber huts had been built in a circle with a fence or stockade around it. Separate from the settlement were other fenced areas that seem to contain merely vegetation.

They were directed to an open area where the men that had visited them we there to greet them. They were encouraged to sit and one man welcomed them to the village.
Dum went forward and placed the gift basket on the ground in front of him. “My name is Dum, this is a gift for the village” he said “The basket is made from woven reeds and has many uses. There inside are some flint spear heads and a knife made from bone that can be resharpened on sandstone. There is some smoked meat in the basket too. These men that visited us,” here Dum indicated the men that he had met a few days ago, “They tasted this meat which is preserved by us.”

The man who Dum assumed was their Leader nodded his thanks. “We will show you around our village. I see you have brought a woman with you. Is she your spirit woman?”

Dum smiled “No, she is my wife and this is our younger child, she has come to show our goodwill and she will observe what your women do, then tell our women of your ways. This is because a woman sees with different eyes to that of a man.”

The Village man laughed and nodded. “Come let us show you how we live and how we grow food to eat close by that we do not have to look for, then one of our women can show Yum around the village.”


                                  Wild carrots 

So for the next hour or so the visitors saw the rounded timber huts whose roofs were covered with reeds. They inspected the area set aside for growing vegetables which were now ready to harvest. 

When they returned to the village Dum asked innocently, “You mentioned you have a spirit woman. Who and what is such a person?”

“The spirit woman is the one that tells of an approaching storm, she will help heal us if we are sick, she will tell us what is good for us and what is bad.” He then paused “I am surprised you do not have a spirit guide too.”

“Perhaps she looks after all people not just your village,” said Dum. Then in all innocence he said “Does she live in the forest, in the sky or in the sea?”

“No, she lives with us in that hut at the edge of the village.” He pointed to a small hut. “She told us to find you. She said that you were the leader with only one eye who would bring his woman.”

Later after they had agreed to continue to exchange ideas they walked back to their cave. The other men that came with them were carrying vegetables from the garden area; Yum however unknown to the others was carrying Lara as well some seeds which had been given to her by the village women.


                               Wild Sunflowers