Understanding

Under different skies
rain threads them together

In different storylines
Characters sing to their minds

Writers write
Dreamers dream
Lovers love

They have found shelter
by knowing that
they exist

Publication – The Short of It Volume II

I am honoured to be included in this volume. I love succinct language. Here, cheers to Susi and all the contributing writers. Available for purchase here.

Reflections & Revelations

Scars

He ran his paint stained fingers over the scars on his chest. They reminded him of the pleasure she gave him. The raised flesh was soft like her lips, and the memory of the demeaning words came from her lips made him hard. But a rush of sadness formed a stabbing pain in his heart.

He got out of bed and moved towards his studio, brought the half smoked weed with him. Continued to work on the painting, he wanted to finish it by dawn. he had already completed the sketch, and the lilac, pink and white windflowers covered most of the canvas. The final touch was to work on the detail of the ugly weathered window where the viewer would see the field of windflowers from. He might go over the field of windflowers with a wash of rain, might not. His mind was scattered by the earlier encounter with her.

He took a drag of the weed, not sure why he smoked it, it had no effect on him whatsoever. She hated him smoking. Was it the rebel in him, or being spiteful, or making a statement of his new found freedom, or an attempt to distract himself from thinking of her? Without any warning, he was all choked up by the lump in his throat trying to move up to release into salt vapours.

Amusement Park

Freshwater beach, Sydney northern beaches, Australia

Cotton candies hung high in the sky
Balancing on our surf boards
we throw our arms in the air
hoping to pull them right down
and taste our childhood again
in this amusement park
floating on a bed of turquoise dreams

I Fought for You

I fought for you my little one 

When you were too weak to defend yourself 

Your future was more precious than my hardship  

My love for you surpassed my fear for men 

I fought for you my little one 

When you looked up to me 

I gathered courage to fight for injustice 

I stood tall and strong with you behind me 

I fought for you my little one 

My beloved, when you grow up  

You will not give way to fear or tyranny 

You will be a man who is truly free 

Writer’s notes: This poem is about the Australia State Governments pushed for mandating the experimental covid-19 vaccines in January 2022, and the everyday Australia people rose to fight for their freedom. 

Pebbles

Chilly autumn day
on a wet shore
The hard-edged pebbles
underneath my unprepared feet
cripple my steps

Leaning against a rock
I watch you snorkeling
flappers up
diving deep
towards the colourful marine world
where you find joy
and peace

Friendship

We switched off
left the city chaos
drove miles
to share the hope
of a sunrise

We needed a group hug
and the comforting arms
of a rising sun

Retired Boats

We’ve been waiting for
a good day to take the boats out

We’ve been spending our time in waiting for the right moment to have fun

We know it’s silly
But our family thrive on regrets

Joy-kill Reality

Living Poetry April visual prompt

Don’t fit in those boots no more
Forgot how to be joyful on the little things in life
Can’t blame the overgrown feet
It’s the fault of the grown-up mind