The night is still
And summer flowers
sleep
To awake with dawn
Tuesday 26 July 2022
A NEW DAY DAWNING
On the distant horizon
The embers of the dawn
Brightly glow
As God blows gentle
breath
Upon the glowing coals
And lights up another
day
GOD’S COUNTRY
The breeze on my face was still warm
Though the sun was
setting
With the horizon a
kaleidoscope of colour,
There would be more
rain before morning.
And the thunder would
return.
The grass was still
wet underfoot
And the air was heavy
with that earthy
Just rained on
fragrance
Overhead through the
leafy canopy
Was the quiet
whispering of the breeze
Followed by a hail of
displaced raindrops
And I smiled to myself
and thanked God
That I should live in
such a place
PEAFOWL
Two peahens watched
As the peacock danced
The courtship display
He proudly pranced
One hen said to the
other
“All this is getting
on my wick”
Then shouted “stop
showing off
And show us your dick”
THE LIGHT SPRING BREEZE PLAYED
The light spring breeze played
An enchanting wind
chime symphony
But as the breeze
became a gale
It soon turned to a
cacophony
MOTHER NATURE DRESSED
Mother Nature dressed
In her splendorous
gown
Brings forth the
beauty
Of springs abundant
pallet
Awakening the meadows
From winters slumber
Bathing them in
sunlight
Drawing the flowers
forth
AS THE AUGUST MOON SHINES BRIGHT
As the august moon shines bright
On a clear summers
night
There is mischief of a
kind
For those with love on
their mind
As the song birds
serenade
The courting couples
on parade
CLOAK OF FOG
A thick winter cloak of fog
Settles deep into the
valley
Making everywhere
anonymous
Obscuring every lane
and ally
And for those poor
souls abroad
Found it was not a
night to dally
QUILPIE
Quilpie, western Queensland
Is in the Channel
Country
Sitting on the banks
of the Bulloo River
Way up along the
Diamantina
In the land of the
boulder opal
DRIFTING BY THE LAKE
The sun glinted on the distant
Snowcapped mountains
As I stood by the lake
With the mist still
lingering on the water
A trout broke the
surface
A few yards away
And drew me back
SEE THE COCK BIRD STRUT
See the cock bird strut
His dance of spring
With flaunting feathers
He will gayly sing
In hope of delivering
Cupids amourous sting
BLACK SHROUD
The black shroud of night
Falls across the land
Like a black velvet
cloak
Dropped by an unseen
hand
SIMPLE PLEASURES
One of my greatest pleasures is a well-kept garden
Whether a cottage
garden with its simplicity
Or paths and planting
laid out with symmetry
Or the parterre with
its ornamental formality
MARBLED SKIES
Marbled skies of broken cloud
Coloured with blues
and greys
In the frosty air of
winters bite
The marbled skies of
winter days
THE MELTING SUN
The last deep orange glow
Of the setting sun
Slipped beyond the
horizon
Like it was melted
By its own heat
Sending the world into
the darkness
Of the fast
approaching night
Monday 25 July 2022
DELPHINIUM
Delphinium, The dolphin flower
From Delphis, The
Greek for Dolphin
With bottle shaped
blooms like a dolphins nose
The golden Buttercup
is its Cousin
More humbly known as
Larkspur
Gracing the meadowland
they’re found in
BOUNTY
Carrots and Swedes,
Fruits and Berries,
Potatoes and Grasses,
Beans and Peas,
Nuts and seeds,
Growing all around,
Mother nature’s
bounty,
Planted in the ground
WOODLAND COURTING
Birds are singing high up in the sycamore
Squirrels busy
themselves in the chestnut.
Trees sway in the
breeze
Limbs out stretched
towards the sun
As in the dampled
sunlight,
We walk hand in hand
below
Slowly wandering the
wood
Through shadows and
the sunshine
The humming wings of
insects
Our only company
In the shade the
spiders silk spun web
Awaits its unsuspecting pray
While I am caught in a
different web
On a perfect afternoon
That I wish will last
forever
STAR-CROSSED WALKERS
A star-crossed couple in the park,
Walking hand in hand
in the dark
They don’t care about
wind and snow
They have a love to
keep them aglow
Saturday 23 July 2022
ASTER
Aster, starflower of the Gods
Pleasing to the varied
eye
In their beauteous
abundance
And loved equally by
the butterflies
LONELY EYOT
On the lonely eyot
The world hastens by
As the rain fed
torrent
Rushes headlong
Towards the sea
And the inhabitants
Of the quiet river
haven
In nest and burrow
Fear their island
homes
Will be washed away
THE RIVER WATERS
The river waters
Take their time
Slowly meandering
Through fragrant
meadows
Copse and wood
Rural idylls all
Where time stands
still.
Swans use a quiet ait
As an islet sanctuary
But the quiet waters
Though slow of purpose
Have no time to dwell
And are reluctantly
Bound for the sea
THE KITCHEN GARDEN
Umbrella-shaped flower heads
Borne upon their stems
With fragrant open
umbel
Sway in the gentle
breeze
Of the kitchen garden
Stirring parsley,
dill, and fennel
CHANTICLEER COCK
In the farmyard
Where the chickens
scratch
A Chanticleer cock
keeps an eye
On his clucking batch
But if some
unfortunate
Mishap should befall
Leaving the farmyard
With no cock at all
Then nature will take
a hand
To correct the mishap
Turning one of the
scratchy hens
Into a chap
Thursday 21 July 2022
THE SEASONS COME AND GO - AUTUMN
The seasons come and go
Almost monotonous I
know
One after another, as
planned
Like the sweep of a
clock hand
Each season reminding
us all
That from winter to
the fall
Is yet another year
slipped by
A step closer to when
we die
A depressing thought I
know
But let the seasons
come and go
For I think it would
be a crime
If there was to be no
autumn time
THE SUFFOLK PUNCH
The Suffolk Punch
Heavy draught horse
Beautiful Chestnut
beast
Solid and dependable
With energetic gait
Known as “good doers”
The Suffolk Punch
Work horse of the land
AUTUMN TREASURE
All was calm, in the morning
After the autumn storm
Had stripped bare the
trees
And swept the fallen
harvest
To havens sheltered
from the gale
In the calm clear
night
The frost crisped the
land
Holding all in
suspended animation
Everything where it
fell
As the sun
strengthened
To melt away the frost
Leaves spill from the
bottom of hedgerows
Like golden coins from
treasure chests
In a vast well filled
vault
Soon enough this
fallen bounty
Would again be
scattered
Across the landscape
On the next autumnal
weather front
AUTUMN REFLECTIONS
I stood on the wet sand
On that cold autumn morning
In the autumn of my
years
With the breeze off
the sea
Chilling my old bones
And gazed out across
the bay
To the distant purple
hills
Their edges blurred
and softened
By the early morning
mist
Their indistinct
silhouette
Reflected on the
moving water
The tidal water
pulling at the reflection
As it moved inexorably
to the open sea
And seemingly carrying
with it
All of my unfulfilled
hopes and dreams
With a shiver I turned
from the scene
And made my way along
the beach
My eyes were drawn to
the hillside
Where the sparsely
covered trees stand
With the last of the
leaves falling
Each fluttering to the
ground
Each leaf’s fall
symbolic
Like the dates of a
calendar
Being peeled off one
by one
Ticking off the days
of my life
As I head towards my
winter
I ALWAYS LOVED THE TIME OF YEAR
I always loved the time of year
Long before that
perfect day
It was a perfect
morning
The best of autumn
The sky the clearest
blue
The air crisp and
clean
The last remnants of
mist
Burnt away by the
rising watery sun
And there she stood
As if to improve on
nature itself
A vision of perfection
Standing at the edge
of the woods
From beneath her
woolen hat
Flaming red hair fell
Then danced upon her
shoulders
And caught on her
scarf
Breath plumed from her
smiling mouth
As she spoke to her
dog
Then she began to walk
The hem of her long
coat swung
With the rhythm of her
hips
As she strode into the
woods
The spaniel chasing a
stick she had thrown
Her boots crunching
leaves underfoot
Still crisp with frost
Where the sun hadn’t
reached
“Come on Jimbo” I said
Letting the dog out of
the car
And we followed her
into the wood
I walked amidst the
skeletal trees
Where Squirrels ran
here and there
Still busily preparing
for winter
I kicked through the
carpet of leaves
Feeling like a
schoolboy again
And birds settled in
my wake
Feeding on insects in
the disturbance
In a clearing I saw
her again
Her red hair like fire
Illuminated in the
sunlight
The dogs soon
introduced each other
And we did also
Two dog lovers talking
in a wood
Two people who would
become lovers
Who both loved the
time of year
GOLDEN HARVEST
The autumn leaves fall
Like flakes of gold
Drifting to earth like
surreal snow
In the golden harvest
As they fall they
dance
Wildly in the breeze
To autumns tune
Before coming to rest
Then on peaceful
mornings
They gather in the
quiet corners
That pepper the autumn
landscape
Cast like a threadbare
cloak
Spread by mother
natures hand
And in the misty morn
The golden harvest
Lays deep and
undisturbed
Like collected
thoughts
In the corners of my
mind
The watery sun slowly
burns away the mist
And illuminates the
October landscape
Before the wind
disturbs the peace
And chases the leaves
away
Scattering them like
my dreams
Friday 15 July 2022
ROSA RUBIGINOSA
Rosa rubiginosa
Eglantine,
will be seen
Rosa
eglanteria, of Eurasia
Sweetbriar
of desire
FIRST FLURRY
Amidst the first flurry
People
start to hurry
And
urgently scurry
For the
very first sight
The first
glimpse of white
The heart
takes flight
I’ve come
to know
When it
first makes a show
How much I
love the snow
TALES OF THE RIVERBANK
A bee sipping nectar from a flower
A sparrow
sipping dew from a leaf
A butterfly
on his way to somewhere
Pays us a
visit but it was only brief
A duck
quacks out on the water
And we hear
a Kingfisher splash
An elegant
swan glides effortlessly by
And the
dragonfly makes a dash
BEES ATTENDED TO THE ROSES
Bees attended to the Roses
As
Butterflies fluttered by
The great
artist mixed his blue
And with it
painted the sky
And the
sweet scent of lavender
Lingered
long on the afternoon air
Should we
ask for better?
I don’t
think we dare
BABBLING STREAM INTO RIVER
Babbling stream into river
Flows on through the lea
skirting woodland as it winds
On the move
constantly
Cutting
thru meadow sweet
On its
journey to the sea
THE CHAFFINCH
She builds her nest
In the time
of spring
And then to
find a mate
She must
patiently sing
Chaffinch
sing your song
So
charmingly
From your
high branch
Up in the
chestnut tree
SWEET BELLS
Sweet bells
Long
racemes
Of pinkish
flowers
Abundant on
Bushy
Deciduous shrubs
Across
eastern States
WIND AND TEMPEST
Wind and tempest
Rain and
flood
The chimney
falls
With a thud
After the
lightning storm
And booming
thunder
Uprooted
trees
Roofs torn
asunder
But in the
calm
As we
convalesce
In the
aftermath
There is a cleanness
DAYLIGHT WAS DECLINING
Daylight was declining
As twilight
loomed
As behind
the horizon
The sun was
consumed
DARK CLOUDS CONCEALED
Dark clouds concealed
The
firmament
The moon
and stars
Still shone
Though not
apparent
And heavens
jewels
Remained,
unseen
WHISPERING BELLS
Whispering bells
The viscid
herb
Inhabiting
the arid places
With its
sticky leaves
And
pendulous bell like
Yellow
flowers
Blooming in
the desert
Of the
south-western states
BETWEEN THE SEASONS
Although the sun
Shone high
In the
dying
Summer sky
The east
wind,
Strong and
shrill
Carried in an
Early
autumn chill
TRANQUILLITY DESCENDS
Tranquillity descends
And
sunshine reigns
When the
storm abates
And peace
remains
THE WIND IN THE TREES
The wind in the trees
Sang a sad
song
A plaintive
sound
Like a
crying child
And as it
blew through
The crying
leaves
On the
rainy morn
Shed tears
that fell
To the
forest floor
YELLOW BELLS
The Yellow bells
The viscid
herb
Inhabiting
the arid places
With its
sticky leaves
And
pendulous bell like
Yellow
flowers
Blooming in
the desert
Of the
south-western states
OUR HOUSE WAS POOR
Our house was poor
But the
land was rich
Mother
Nature’s
Bountiful
abundance
Rich in
leaf and bud
Enriched in
flowers
Many a
summers’ day
I lay
amongst grasses
And the wild
flower stems
In scented
meadows
That leaves
me dazed
As the
summer sun
Set alight
the burning gem’s
CHIRRUPING CRICKETS
Chirruping Crickets
Foxes in
the thicket
With
croaking frogs
And barking
dogs
Screeching
bats
And yowling
cats
We left the
ugly city
For
peaceful and pretty
Well the
country life
Is nothing
but strife
CALIFORNIA YELLOW BELLS
California Yellow bells
Inhabiting
the arid places
With
pendulous bell like
Yellow
flowers
Blooming in
the desert
SOUTH WESTERN MISSION BELL
The Mission bells
Blooming
herb
Of the
south-western States
With dark
purple
Bell-shaped
flowers
Mottled
with green
SUMMER FLOWERS ARE BLOOMING
Summer flowers are blooming
In the
scented meadows
Are the sun
slowly sets
Lengthening
the shadows
THE SUMMER IS ENDING
The summer is ending
The flowers
are dying
The meadows
are still
And the
geese are flying
NORTH WESTERN MISSION BELLS
The Mission bells
Blooming
herb
Of the northwestern
states
With
green-and-purple
Bell-shaped
flowers
WHEN THE BURNING SUN SINKS LOW
When the burning sun sinks low
Setting the
western sky aglow
And the
evening shadows grow
This is the
time of the amorous beau
A LONG AGO WORLD
A long-ago world
In Days of innocence
And a
wondrous summer
We stood on
the cusp
Of loves
first awakening
When
feeling awkward and gawky
We took our
first faltering steps
In the
realm of love
Wearing
swim shorts
And
self-conscious blushes
It was a
guiltless time
When
holding hands
Was a
physical pleasure
And stolen
kisses
Seemed to
last forever
If I had
the presence of mind
I would
have bottled that summer
And when I
felt
Tarnished
by the world
I would
take a long sip
And be
refreshed
DAYS OUT ON THE WATER
Days out on the water
Windswept
with rime
Watery
sunshine above a
Putty
coloured sea
As I sailed
the estuary
With dad at
the helm
OH MOTHER NATURE
Oh mother nature
You both
care and nurture
Bursting
out in spring,
When the
songbirds sing
Bringing
daffodils so bright
To fill me with delight,
They shine with ease
Bobbing in
the breeze
Dancing as
if one
As golden
as the sun
Blossom
fills the trees
Bright
enough to tease
Before the
blossom has to go
Like cherry
pink snow
And after
spring hors d’oeuvres
And
starters have been served
You bring
us summer fare
With
fragrance in the air
Flowers of
every shade and hue
From
crimson red to violet blue
Then as
September wends
And the
main course ends
You take no
time to rest
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