You are on page 1of 120

Listen.

A play.
A monologue for radio.
Listen.
Listen. It is dark now.
Listen to the silence.
Listen to your heart.
Listen to the silence of your heart. Beating.
Your heart. Silently beating.
Hear it now. See the silence.
See the silence of your heart. Beating.
Hear the waves. Crashing on the shore. Outside. In the dark.
Here the waves. Crashing.
Too
And Fro
Too
And Fro.
Hear the crashing of the waves.
Breathe.
Listen to your breath.
Hear the dark.
See the moon rising above the waves crashing.
Listen to the light landing on the sea spray crashing.
It is night.
The town is sleeping.
All is quiet.
Bathed in the white light of the silvery moon the town is sleeping.
In silence.
The cemetery is empty. All is quiet.
Shadows flit through the silvery light.
Land. Wait. Whisper.
Echoes of the past enter.
Fade. Fall into the silence whilst the waves continue.
Rising and falling the sound is within you.
The energy flows. Within, without, around you.
A flow though flowers.
Trees.
The river. Carries the voices tinkling in the distance separating the past from the present.
Energy flows on the same path.
See a figure climbing. Dressed in white looking. Searching. Seeking. Far from the path.
Rescuing. Saving with a staff. Walking. Higher. Rising with the pathway.
Listening.
Listen.
Hear the voice within you heard.
The figure searching is you.
You are found. You have found. Yourself. Coming back to the path. Climbing.
Listening.

1
Listen
Hear the town sleeping in the hollow between the hills.
Listen to the water flowing, dancing, hurtling through the hills
Lift up thine eyes to the stars and listen to the echo of the music flowing
Dancing through the silence of the trees waiving in the breeze

For in the continuing of the dance the music flows through the glance
Between lovers walking on the shore in the instant of yore
Choosing memory soothing grace removing the weight one bore
To lift the burden to help those around one hear the music flowing
Dancing with the river hurtling through the hillsides sheltering
The dwellings congregating around the steeple beneath the cock
Crowing with the dawn breaking with the daylight spreading
Shadows shortening and turning, lengthening with the lore.

Listen
Listen to the silence surrounding
The stars
Spinning
Specks of light
Glimmering hope
Indicating
A pathway
To beyond
Our earthbound existence
Beyond time
Spinning
A web of words woven
In vain
Attempting to reveal
The hidden
Behind a veil
Which only Death may cross
To no avail.

2
Listen
Hear the earth crying out in the silence
Hear the earth crying out in the silence before the storm
Waiting
Waiting for the rains to come
Waiting for the clouds to billow and blow
New life into the dryness
Parched emptiness, crackling brittleness, skeletal remains of life
Dust blown ashes

Burnt cinders

Waiting

Forevermore for billowing clouds blowing life bearing gifts from afar
Off land or sea, ocean or forest,
Blow no more

The eye listens


In silence
Sees
The beauty of the wood
Within the trees

The “I” sees

3
The beauty of the Verb
Believes

In one
Greater
Beyond mortal man

Hopes, has fears


Faith
And love

Of one greater
In heaven above
The trees
The eye
In silence
Sees.

See the sunlight dancing


Sparkling on the water
See the river flowing
Ripple in the breeze

See the sunlit flowing river


Wonder where it’s going
See the shadows dancing
Through the trees

See the sunlight sparkling


On the water flowing with such ease.

The wanderer stands alone


Watching
In silence, observing
Recording
The mysteries of existence
Listening to sound

Seeing a flower for the first time


Smelling its scent
In the breeze

4
The wanderer
Sees the green buds in winter
Waiting to become leaves

Hawk high flyer


Hovering
Immobile in the wind
Gliding
Back & forth
Above the hedgerow
Wings flapping like billyo
Immobile
Diving
Death
Facing the wind
Gliding
Hovering
Gliding
Hovering
Immobile in the wind
Gliding
Hovering
Flight
Eyeing the word!

Surrounded
By tall towers
Blank windows
Rectangular blocks
Of cemented ugliness
Where a surreal beauty pervades
In its abstract nature
Wind-blown
The epitome of industrial deprivation
Alienation
De-classification
Exploitation
Misery hand in hand with poverty
Where alcohol is a cheap escape
Into oblivion
Annihilation
Deprivation
Destitution
Prostitution
To pay the ticket home

5
Yet here
In this wasteland
Human happiness reigns
Defiant
Proud
Protective
Of the soul
Of the heart which beats
Throbs with generosity
Giving
Hope
To those in the same
Boat
Crossing the sea
From Africa
To escape starvation
Desertification
Destitution
Yet helping
Loving
Giving
Happiness and laugher
In the midst of material misery
Non-consumption
In a society
Where the consumer is
King
Whilst having the cash
O make the credit card fling
On the latest
“made in China”
created
need
to feed
the masses
with five loaves
and two fishes.

Beneath the frozen surface of the lake


Fish still swim
Free.

High in the forest


The sun shines
On the tall pines

6
On the surface of the land
Cones lie
Amongst leaves
Being
The horizon of time

“Which route?”
the mountaineer wondered

Borrow from the Greats


What they themselves plundered

Imagine the mountain


To climb for no reason
Other than rhyme
And in the climb
Grow
Fond of the sunlight
On the soft snow
So crisp
You’ll become
A will o’the wisp….

See the sunlight on the Chinese temple


Geometric perfection
See the dragons
To ward off evil
Like gargoyles
Of a cathedral
Form
A common tissue
Cut in different fashions
By humanity worn
Out, renewed
Borrowed, used
Re-viewed
As the years spin through the cycle
Man sees
The shadows slipping longer
While the breeze
Brings news from afar
An unheard of place
Now at war
For what the doctors spin
And spokesmen weave
Into the cloth

7
To feed
The masses
With a daily froth
Of fear
That the disaster
Could be here
Whilst the white swan stands
And waits
On the frozen surface
Of the lake
The Chinese temple warms
As a new epoch is born
China awakes
Opens its factory gates
To the West
Capitalism shifts
At the masses request
For more
Needs
To be done
To help the poor
And dispossessed
Survive
While the fat cat parachutists
Thrive
The masses
Dive
For cover
As the suicide
Bomber blows
Himself up
In the name of
A Mountain
Pathway’s woes
For the Chinese
Temple has two
Flights of stairs
Enrance and Exit
With a circular view
Of the world
Within and without
Reflected in the water
Frozen fast
In the present
To last
Spanning time
Projecting its perfection
In unwritten rhyme
Sublime
The roof curves upwards

8
Towards the stars
Which spin
Illuminating the present
With the past they bring
To light
The wanderer’s way
Through the night

Sea birds wheel and cry


In graceful flight
Perfection perfected
By Nature’s might
In the struggle to survive
Where the fittest thrive
On a die of daily bread
And thanks
In the temple, church, mosque
Sinner agog stands
Re-collecting the past
In the present to last
In a future forged
By the word
In action
Heard
In the echo of the silent night
As the universe itself
Takes flight.

Archways, columns
Geometric patterns
Bells dragons
A golden orb
A roof like a boat
To travel the space between stars
Suspended above
Its own reflection
On the frozen lake
Of love.

A red lantern within


Water splashing

9
Through dragons’ mouths
To quench
The thirst
To drink from the lake
Of love.

Bridges broken can always be


Rebuilt
To allow the passage
Of time
Transporting movement and motion
With an electronic “e” to become
Emotion
Raised from the depths
To the surface of the present
Of which Being is
The horizon
Whilst the church clock strikes
The hour
Passes as the river flows
Beneath the reflected bridge
Allowing people reconnected
To grow
Into the space separated by time
And language lost
For words fail
To express the human cost
Of bridges broken
As a token
Of the gargoyle’s stare
Way to stop the share
Ring of ideas
To chime on the hour
From tower to tower
Steeple and call
Across the water which flows
Within all
Which lives, which gives.

Set time aside


Name the hour
Watch the opening
Of a flower in Spring
Bloom, fade and fall
Freeze the reflection
Of the frozen surface of sound
Which echoes from the silent past unbound
By love it unfolds
Releasing waves which flow

10
With the present
Instant
Froze.

The wanderer strode out into the mourning


Wailing which filled the dawning daybreak spawning
Holding his message of love aloft
Caring naught for personal cost
Gathering friends he strode the land
Of another where he did not fit
Was seen by the many as an exocentric
Guy who healed, with a message of love revealed
To him, alone,
In the desert he abode
Tempted by imagination he strove
Tearing himself in two
Before clinging on to a Father
Figure of childhood renewed
In birth, baptised by another
Who lived in the caves, alone, who knew
The path to the mountain where few had trod
Where ten rules had been carved in the heart
Of slaves fleeing to make a new start
In a foreign land free
From constructing the chains of tyranny
Of pyramids pointing to the sky
The wanderer rose in the mists on the mountain he climbed
Pondering the ideas he entwined
Creating anew self-conception as the path drew him higher
The flames of love burned a bush in a fire he passed
As he pondered the wisdom of writing, except in sand
Contemplated action from a helping hand
To feed the souls of the crowds gathering below
Providing peace in a philosophy of love which was to grow
To a new testament to the mountain he climbed
Showing a new vision the pathway entwined
Incorporating wisdom brought from afar
By travellers crossing mountains following a star
Reflecting the ancient ideas of a land once fled
Transporting ideas to a crossroads where many were read
Forged anew in the pathway few trod
Crossing mountains ever higher seeking God
On the horizon of time in the instant of eternity now thine
To fill as thy will, perhaps accepting to sacrifice your self to a power higher still
Deep within the waters of thy soul lit by the flame Lucifer stole
For Man to see mirrored their reflection as gods
On the stage of the world where the word goes unheard as its spoke
Creating in its passing over a silence bespoke
In the mind, a pathway towards tomorrow seen by the blind
Leading the way, the wanderer returned the gift he’d been given

11
For to climb to the summit had he striven finding resources within
Allowing him to go beyond where others had trod, beyond himself
He explored as he wandered climbing ever higher
Accompanied by angels guarding his step he rose to the call
Of an inner voice once heard before the fall
From a garden beneath a tree
He rose on the spirit within
Which lifted his body as he strode
As on a donkey he rode to be crowned king
Betrayed by a kiss, a kingdom to win
Climbing higher, to be tempted by the fire
Of love
Of a spiritual kind, seen by the blind leading the way
To the wailing which fills the dawning break of day.

Flight

At first heading full throttle towards the sun


The wax will melt the wings before you’ve begun
To manage the controls, got a grip, your bearings,
You’ll have to take from the sun, and stars, so better learn
To read yourself and others on the journey, then,
Sit back, relax, enjoy the view on auto-pilot
As the words flow onto the screen
Switch on automatic spell check and dictionary of synonyms
Sitting comfortably, then you can begin
To tell the tales, weave a web of words with which to wonder whilst you wander
Off course, a while, digress, stray from the point
Of destination on a one-way ticket, go-simple
Listen to the laugher
In the street
For such camaraderie fills
The fuel tank
Check the oil, water, temperature gauge
For if there’s some kind of mechanical problem
At 15,000 feet
Your on your own
But unlike sailors crossing the Atlantic
You can use
Both hands
Both sides of your brain
Must be fully functioning
To match wit and repartee
Of the wise guy
You meet on the way
Whilst attending
To the whims of the passengers aboard
And to the controls on the flight deck

12
Since to fly further cabin crew have been reduced
To twelve though there might well be
The odd stow-away who slipped on board, unnoticed,
The ghost in the machine, Frankenstein and friends who came along
Just for the ride
Round the block and were taken by surprise
When they looked down to see their little town
Disappearing in the distance
On the horizon keep an eye on the length of shadows
Force and direction of the wind
Swept coast
Line
Crossed
Check altitude on a regular basis
Avoid alcohol and other substances which can confuse
The radar
Trap
Watch your speed
Take a compass
And point of access
To your childhood
Dreams
In the luggage compartment
Carry a load
Since you never know
What the future will hold
Weather forecasts, especially those early morning shipping
“Dogger,Viking, Fischer, German bight” type
“Rockwall, Malin Head, Cromerty”
“fastnet” and the like
should be listened to attentively
carry a swiss
roll and army
knife
Be Prepared
To whistle under all circumstances
Even if you do
Get the rhyme wrong
& bon vent & bon voyage

13
Listen.
You’re flying now.
Flying high over roof tops, high over houses.
You can hear the city sleep
You can hear all cities sleep.
All
Except one.
For hear there is no sleep.
The city never sleeps.
It can not sleep.
For sleep is a luxury it can not afford
For in this sleepless city death is prepared.
Plans drawn
In sand
To send in the drones
Spy
Who goes where, does watt, why
Is the driver of that car turning
Up the volume
Of the local
Radio
Listening
To V.O.A.
Say
345 found
dead
shot through with shrapnel wounds to the head arms and body parts blowing
in the wind,
blowing in the windless city, the sleepless city of endless night
you are over it now
looking
looking down
looking down on the horrors
of war
torn faces
crying
babies
crying
children
screaming
women wailing

14
soldiers
pointing
weapons
of mass
destruction
at one another
launching missiles
like snowballs
at one another
snowballs which smash
through houses
cities
disappear
beneath the plumes
of black acrid smoke billowing upwards carrying the scent
of rotting corpses
remains
of human flesh
death
hangs over this land
of promise
which promised
to be
the new Eden
for those in flight
like you
fleeing
another city of endless night
where huge granite blocks were towed
positioned into place
winched, levered and pulled
upwards
towards the stars
creating
tombs to outlast time
to store
gold
frankincense
and myrrh
with the mummified remains
and body
parts
of gods
who ruled as pharaohs should
live humbly with humility
with their neighbours whom they
love
to annihilate
conquering
new lands,

15
even the moon
shed
light
tears which fell
in the form
of snowball rocket attacks
in a desert storm
of mass
destruction
planned
financed
from afar
off land
lit by a star
spangled banner
raised
from the dead
lying
in 345 ruined dwellings
which were
not
passed over
in the wake
of the blast
shattering
time
into fragments
each to last

the length of an echo


of a word
passed

over

you see
the screaming city
hear the wailing
word
rippling wave spreading creation as the screaming rockets fall piercing the air with a thin
whistle announcing the end of time

Being

Love

Being

Giving

16
Love

Which flows into a lake of tears


In a silent city which never sleeps
Where plans are
Drawn
For a new
Dawn
To break
The backs of those who wait

long
at the crossroads
where camels trekked
over the shifting
slipping
silent
sand
flowing
through the hour
glass of despair
reflecting the horror
in the acrid air
blowing
in
the
wind

Nuclear
Might
Becomes a possibility
Towards a
Final solution
Drunk
To the dregs
Of the earth
To the last
Drop
Creating conditions appropriate
For a seed
Of a shattered shard
Of the mirror
To fall
Casting light
Back towards the pinnacle
Of the pyramid
Beside Babylon
In a fertile land

17
Drained
To the lees
Marsh arabs wandered
Into the city
Which never sleeps
A wink

Nor dreams
For in this city
The Night Mare has foaled
A million shards of shattered glass
Each cutting time into seconds which count
The dead and dieing
Wailing piercing the air
The word
Is not
Heard
If there is
No air

Before the beginning

Gives birth
To breath

Which rises like vapour


Across the lost lake
Of love
Beneath the silvery snow-capped peaks
Reflecting
The falling tears of the moon
Cedar trees sway
In the breeze

Bitter, black, acrid smoke


Billows
In plumes
Too dense to see through
Sirens wail
See
N
N
Is on the spot
Reporting
The death
Of 345
Spots
On
goooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
gle earth

18
Over which you fly
By night
With a cabin
Crew
Reduced
To twelve
Or thereabouts.

A bargain
At half
Past mid-night
Strikes twelve strokes on the church
Tower
Whilst you lie
Lost
Slumbering
In dreams
Of Night
Mares
Riding
Through
Seas
Washing
Words
Cleansing them of meaning
Anaesthetising
See
N
N

Listen.

Listen to the water.


Listen to the water lapping. Listen to the waves.
Lapping.
The boat is rocking.
Gently.
In the waves.
Slowly
Rising and falling

With the waves

Listen

19
It is dark.
Hear the darkness
Inside your heart
Listen
To the waves
Gently rocking
Rising and falling
In the silent dark
Hour before dawn
Breaks
A liquid of light
Upon the horizon
Of sand
Falling
Rising
With the waves
Washing
Upon the shore
Line of innocence
Crossed
In your dreams
The boat is the earth
travelling
Through the waves
Of light
Spreading
In the breeze
Blowing
Through the silence
Flowing
Through the seas
Surface
Splashing
Upon the bow
But listen

The boat is creaking


In the waves
The boat is leaking
Days
Dawn
Fills the sails unfurled
The boat is lifting
But listen hard
Perhaps is listing
In the waves
Rising
And falling like empires
In the haze
Dinosaurs disappearing

20
Walls crumbling
Beneath the waves
Rising
And falling
With the day’s
Lengthening shadow stretching across the waters, mingling, of the waves, rising and falling
Stars appear
In the silence
Of your heart
Beating
With the waves
Listen
To the shadows
Falling
Upon the surface
Of waves
Gently rocking
The silent emptiness
Of days
Breaking
Upon the bows
Rising
Falling
Gently rocking
On the frontier
Of time
Slipping by
In the instant
Of the horizon
Rising
And falling
With the waves
Appearing
Disappearing
Days
And nights
Stretched into Being
Aware
Of the rhythm
Of the rise and fall of your chest
Breathing
In the instant
Listening
To your heart
Beating with the waves
Unfurling days
Of light
In the darkness
Of your heart
Stars lead the way

21
Across the oceans
Of love
Whilst the boat
Rises
And falls
With the waves.

Cascading coincidence
Coming
Together
In the rhythm
Of motion
Moving
With time
Flowing
With the river
Towards the ocean
Where sea-gulls wheel
And cry

Beside a lake
A man walks
Alone
Seeing in the reflection
Time
Unfold
Images to come
Past
In the reflection of the present
To last

A diamond
With an infinite number of sides
Each reflecting
Tides
And time
Which wait
Together
At the starting gate
Ready to run
With the rising
Begin
To last
In the present
Past

Time tells a tale


Of limits exceeded
Frontiers erased
Barriers broken

22
Discoveries made

Within
Oneself
Touch the boundaries
Of peace

Feel the river of love flowing


Though space
Connecting
Members
Of the human
Race
Mirrored
In the reflection
On the water
Of a lake
Where a man walks
Alone
To see
The horrors of humanity
Cast
With the dice
To last

For the soul mirrored is universal


Evolution knows no reversal
The ghost in the machine waits
Man deprived of love hates
his neighbour but welcomes travellers from afar
bearing gifts from a foreign land
crafted by an unseen hand
with an eye
aye
I
Believe
The travellers followed a star
Bearing gifts
From afar
Off plane
Another time
Dimension
Which flows
Like a river
Which goes
Towards the ocean
Of love
Which is the source of the flow
Which creates

23
Matter
Which attracts
Birds of the same feather
Which flock
Together
To survive the journey
Through a timeless dimension where memory
Plays tricks on the mind
Selecting, piecing together a puzzle
Seen by the blind
Who wait
By the starting gate
Which could be
Tomorrow
Or yesterday

For memories stored


Can be restored
To life

The past is recycled


In the unbearable
Lightness
Of
Being
On the horizon of Time
Which flows in the hour
Glass
Reflecting
The past
Present
To be
The mirrored soul
Of humanity

Betrayed
By a kiss
Leading to the fall
From a garden
Where an ear was cut
And the Word
Heard
No more
Except within
The mind’s
Eye
Aye
I

See

24
The fruit of the tree
Bears the seeds
Of time
To be

Masked
Cloaked in shame
Men become gods
God has no name
Being
Omnipresent
Infinite yet the same
Ocean of love
Mountain track
Open door
Way back
Home
To begin
Anew
Day due

On the hour
To last
The present
Past

For children believe


The words of wisdom
Adults weave in a web of words which wait
Ensnaring their prey until its too late

To step back
From the edge
Of time
On the brink
Of space
To fall
Into adulthood
And see
What was is
No longer
But his and her story
Board
Drawn
In the mirrored reflection
Of the soul in the sea
Of life which wells from the source
Of the ocean of love which flows through Being
Alive.

25
Listen

Listen to the darkness falling


Listen to the shadows fading
Listen to the snowflakes falling
Listen to an inner-voice calling
One to love
One
Another

See the friendship in a smile


Meet a fellow, talk a while
Exchange a word
Admire the graceful flight
Of birds
Hear the whispering
Of the breeze
Hear the movement
Of the trees
See the twinkling
Of the stars
Light reflected
From afar
Hear the rippling
Of the waves
See the moonlight
On the mountain ridge
Silhouetted
In the lake
Of the ocean
Of love
Which pushes the petal of the flower
To open
An hour

Having seen all this


Remember
It is yours to give
To share
With your fellows
Travelling the dunes
Of time
On a similar journey
To thine.

26
Searching in your heart you’ll find
The key to open the windows of the mind
Allowing the world to enter in
Communion with one another
To begin to be passed with the love which lasts
To feed the flame of desire
Which takes your love to a higher plane
To meet the maker who has no name
But Being the horizon of time
Sought in the quest for truth in rhyme
Caught in the space between the lines
On the palm of your hand
Which lead back to a long-forgotten land
Of childhood play
In a garden walled by the hour
Beneath the turning shadow of a tall black tower
Looking out to a sunlit sea
Mirrored in the instant of eternity
Smashed when travelling through the gates you passed
Coming of an age to reason and doubt
The existence of the truth
Locked in your heart
In the form of a flower
Opening with the warmth of love on the hour
Of your death before being born anew
In a garden without a wall
With many a path all leading to a summit hidden from view
Your heart will tell you the path to tread
As you listen to the voices inside your head
The pathway of love is the one to chose.

27
Listen

Listen to the music of the silent stars as you climb


A snow-capped summit ridge following the rhyme
Leading ever higher the pathway winds
Through the mists enveloping time

Climbing ever higher you tread


Towards the summit on which you stand alone
Listening to the music of the universe flow
In patterns of geometric form

Through being on the summit in the snow


Listening to your heart beat
Watching the movement of the universe
In the space below your feet

Listening to the music of space


Stretching towards infinity
Within you and beyond you
For all form one

Geometric pattern resounding as a gong


Sends waves which ripple across the waters of your soul
Into the infinite which stretches across space time
Heard in the listening to the silence of your heart
Beat to the rhythm of the universal dark
Expanding as it slows from a Big bang
To collapsing into a black hole.

28
Listen

Listen to the love


Beating
In the silence
Of your heart

Listen
To the silence
Of your soul
Beating
In the dark

Depths within you


Lies a well
Of infinite depth
Brimming
With love

Life and laughter


Overflowing
With the sunlight dancing across the water
Of your soul

29
“Follow Me” a voice was heard
listening
to the echo
of the word

cross through silent space


a cry
without an answer
‘why?’

Wait ?

For the date


When the unburdened past
Is here
To last.

30
Listen

What is the source


Of all enthusiasm
To climb
Alone
Seeking truth
In rhyme
What inspiration leads
What unsatisfied
Needs
Met
In searching find
The pathway
Seen by he blind
Who lead
Humanity
To a heartfelt need
To be
At one
With one another
Though alone
With a soul
Of one’s own
Making
Good or bad
The choice is not one’s own
To be had

Unless
Taking your life
In your hands
You read the writing
On the sands
Of time
Understand the message
Between the lines
Writ
Of Sanskrit lore
Abounding mortal gods
And immortal men
Of yore
Choosing
To lose yourself
To re-cover
Your nakedness
Anew
With a fallen
Fig-leaf
Or apple blossom

31
Blowing
In the wind
Of the desert
Storm
Troopers
Advancing
To the sound of trumpets
Heralding
A new
Dawn
To dusk
Curfew
Until the mid-night hour
Strikes noon
And waves
Of wailing break tomorrow’s
New
Sea
N
N
Program
Broadcast
On the air
Waves
Live
Of
Love
Rolling
With the breakers
Swelling
Rising
Falling
Swelling
Rising
Falling
Sand
Through the hour
Glass
Reflecting
The image you have carved
Of your soul
Chance
To love
One
An other
Time
Warner
Movie
In which you star
Shining

32
Like a beacon of hope
To fellow travellers
In the train
Of camels
Rising
Falling
The dunes
Crossing
Time
In the telling
Tail
Untold
Since the plot has yet
To be writ
In Sanskrit
Runes
Or sand
For you are the author
The quill is in
Your
Hand
Some face
To forge.

33
Alone, far
From the madding
Crowd I wander
Seeking that which lies
Within

The silence
Of my heart
I hear
Whispered words of wisdom dear

Which allow me to reflect


On life, on love,
On Man’s bequest
Of infinite pain
Redeemed by one
Pathway with no name
I walk
Far from idle, chattering talk
On high hills alone
With one
Who has no name
But love
For all which is
To be
Seen and unseen
Shrouded in life’s mystery
Whilst the stars return my gaze
I wonder
At the beauty wrought
And give praise.

Listen

Listen to the spinning silence of the woven word


Listen to the spinning of the clock that chimes unheard
For the unmoved mover moves in mysterious ways
For in the silence ticking is the story of our days
And nights writ in the sand which flows
Through our fingers as the trickle shows
Evolution proceeds adapting those which fit
Into the pattern which mother nature has knit
For those which adapt survive

34
The time which none may tether nor the tide
None may ride without one day breaking on the shore
The spider spins which becomes no more
Than a web of silvery thread to catch the imagination in flight
From the darkness of being without light
To lighten the load, carried on a donkey without a goad
But a vision to inspire, allowing the artist to fly ever higher
And a world to create, but which of the real is but a poor duplicate
Counterfeit copy of his soul wrought in the abstraction of all
Reflected on the still surface of the depths
He plunges to find within him the edge of infinity without
Which all counterfeited comes to nought!

Listen

Listen

Listen to the wind slipping through the silence of the starless night
Wonder at the beauty of the universe in flight through time

Through space

A miracle which the understanding can not fathom nor face


If it tried

Which is why the moon cried on seeing man’s plight


Nailed to a hilltop without a redeemer in sight

Except the spider hanging free


On a gossamer thread of history
Foretold by the shadows of the past

For the web of words woven to ensnare

35
Leads to a pathway where all may share
The unbearable lightness of being given a choice
Of words to use with which tone of voice

To employ, create,
Whilst creating may destroy
Myths by memory past
In the present to last
The journey just begun
In the fall of first flight
From a garden in the middle of the night
Whilst the wind blew
Why, nor where, nobody knew,
Yet all wondered at the sight
Of the beauty of being on the horizon of time
An eternal instant of the sublime
Borne by the sea
Rising and falling with the moon’s tears
Overcoming Man’s fears
Love triumphs in the Spring
Flower which blooms anew
And a debt repays all that is due
On the instant redeemed
By the scythe swinging hour!

36
Listen

Listen to the rising


And falling
Of our love
For one
Another
On the sea-shore
Sea gulls wheel
And cry
Whilst we lie
Naked
In each other’s arms
Embraced
We kiss

Whilst rising
And falling
We become
One
Love
Breaking barriers of time
Shattered in the instant
Sublime

37
In memory of Anna Politovskaïa

Will the journalist’s pen


Be crushed
Into submission
Yielding
To a tradition
Of not letting
The people know
Anything but
Half truths
And lies
Fabricated
In the machine of death
Which runs
On
Its own steam
Of blood fuelled
Ink
Stained
Flesh flowing
Through the gates of time
Into the dawn
Of democracy
Flying at half mast
Beneath the moon
Showered
Red
Square
Stained
Stench
Seeping
From the tomb
Stone
Crushed
By the silent night filled moan and gasp
As a sobbing people stare and ask
The moon why
Blood soaked tears stain the sky
with the past
Present
Future
Empty horizon of time
Beneath a shadowless tree
Bearing seeds of death
Blowing in the wind
Where the answer is
Scattered amongst the stones
Crushed moist with blood
And empty eye

38
Sockets staring
At the silent screen
Flickering
Sea
N
N
Transmitting truths
Across the waves
Of silent rotting corpses without graves
Forever
And ever
Amen ?

The time traveller


Climbed the steep stairway leading to the trapdoor into the attic of his mind.
Old books littered the floor along with empty bottles from days of yore.
Drunk to the lees-time’s last drags – condensed into fiction to feed
The imagination in dire need of answers to questions posed
Since the spirit of creation rose from the void before the beginning borne
To explode into a myriad of galaxies spawned
And scattered across the universe in waves
Of love
Which raised the starting flag, let it fall, creating a garden behind a wall of flame,
Whilst arose a word beyond a name language could assign
Though language itself indicated its existence throughout time
And space, confusing the followers who mistook the signs
For the essence providing the whole they designed
Stories to show the beauty of being to the blind
By a guy from Galilee, where now rages a war
Of words for what no one present saw
at the time
Passed down in written form speaking of the sublime
In tales told whilst in the telling let the story unfold the past into the present to last
The reflection in the mirror of the mind
Read by the time traveller, long since blind to the images of the sea
N
N
Reality stored to feed the imagination of those in need
Of more

Words to flow of energy pulsating life driving vitality through the seed
Of time
Blowing in the wind
Across oceans divine
Emptiness of star filled space of the universe overflowing
Love borne seeds of time…
Falling in a garden
Of the mind.

39
Why open that book
Why read that word
Why listen to the voice
You’ve already heard
Yet wait,
Procrastinate
Ponder
Wonder
Whilst admiring the treasures and plunder
Amassed,
In a word hoard
Stored
To be unleashed
Allowing the psyche to be released, run wild, rampant, like a child
Explore, discover, touch, taste, learn
In awe
Of all that nature has
In store
In innocence open

To the bombs which fall


Upon the cradle

Yet see
From the charred ruins
Green shoots of hope take route in the ashes and dust
Of the empty tomb
Of the womb
Untouched,
Unscathed
Erased
To rise
Through time
In rhyme reflecting the mirror of the soul divine
Love
Falling in flakes of innocence upon the frozen lake
Whose unsounded depths stretch to an unfathomable infinity
Yet lie within the soul of every living being
Alone yet part of the whole
Pattern of creation continuing upon the horizon
Of time
Which flees faster than its own shadow
Beneath the moonlight falling
With the flakes of snow

40
Whilst the owls hoot
Since they know
There is neither beginning nor ending
Only a continuing
Change
Of season
Flowing
With the movement of the mountains in starlight
Twinkling as the patterns rotate in the heavens above
Reflected on the surface
Remembered
Re-called
To life
As green shoots thrust
Forth into the sunlight, absorbing, reflecting life in the instant
Of being
Upon the horizon
Of time.

For as the son sees the Father


The word is
Heard
In the silent echo
Of love
Reverberating through the mountains
Of time
Past, present, to come into being
The son borne spirit of the verb
Heard to be
Heard in the word
Of the son speaking wisdom divine
From the heart
Of thine.
Amen.

As the word waits


Silence
Invades the space

Between the lines

41
Of thought
Which re-mind
The listener to
Re-wind

But what if
The cassette has no beginning
Nor end
But just is

The gradual evolution from monkey to man


Swinging ape like in the trees
Strengthening the back
Walking on two feet
Never looking back
Nor sideways
But straight
Ahead as he swung
Neglecting whether or not
Time had begun
To turn with the sun

Transition
From monkey to man
Can you imagine
The time span it took
To get from the monkey
To a shepherd’s crook?

Shepherding, husbanding, looking after the flock


For the future
Generations
To have what it took
To survive
The desert storms which reigned
Outside
The clan
Stood fast
With a structure
Built to last

Inclement weather
Knowing the morrow would bring
Warmth, life and love
To everything
Which lived
Under the sun, moon and rain
Perpetuating eternity, again.

42
Listen

Listen as you hear the unfurling silence of your dreams


Listen as your heartbeat tells you what it seems
To hear
In the silence of the stillborn night
Echoed in the eternal flight into the future fled
Being in the instant shed.

Time abstracted time stands still


Beneath a shadow
‘pon a hill
a cross
humanity’s gain
or loss
‘tis yet unclear
though the abstraction remains
in our hearts dear

Love remains
Immutable, silent in swirling days
Of sorrow past
Love remains
True to last
A lifetime of pain
Only to rise up again, unconquered,
To reign
Throughout the universe

Love

Remains

Unchanging
With the tides or time
Constant
Sublime
Divine

43
Listen

Listen to the silence


Listen to the silent beating
Listen to the silence beating
In your heart
Listen
Listen to the waves washing
Listen to the waves washing upon the shore

Listen to your breathing


Like waves washing
On the shore

Silence
Yet in the silence a fullness
A wholeness
A being at one
With the universe
With universal being
At one
With one
And all being at one with one
Universal being
All encompassing
All pervading presence
Of love

Amongst the ashes


Shoots appear
Amongst the blackened and decayed a ray
Of hope springs forth
Enlightening
The day
Light hour
Of dawn
Upon which unfolding love spreads forth her wings of morn
to mourn
the quick and the dead
redeem the battle fought against the hour
love all that lives beneath the moving shadow of a sunlit tower
of love.

44
Listen

Listen to your heart


As it guides your footsteps upon their weary way

Listen to you heart


As it guides your actions through a busy day

Follow the words your heart dictates


Wander through meadows your pathway takes

Climb a mountain if that’s your desire


To see the word, climb ever higher
Until the realm of spirit you reach
Relinquish the past, for the future you’ll teach
To tread the pathway others have lead
To see the universe in a loaf of bread.

45
Listen
Listen to the temple
Of thy body
Listen to the word
Open the doorway
Let in the congregation
In the form of the Lord

One being
Infinite
Contained yet
Void
Containing time
In a silent sea of faces listening
To a voice within
The temple
Ricochet across the still waters
Of thy soul
Reflected
On the surface
Of a pool of infinite depth
The sun moon and stars rotate
As galaxies and universes themselves
Rotate in the revolution of evolution borne
In the word
Which echoes inside the temple
Personified in the flight of a bird
A dove
A symbol of love
The spirit which flies

46
With the imagination taking flight
Journeying through the sill waters
Of thy soul
Being
Carried in the carrying
Of the cross
Uplifted on thermals to soar
Above the clouds and look down
On the town
Nestling in the foothills beside a lake beside a sea
Where there wanders a guy
Listening
To the rockets blast
And the blood flow
Suffering
Children to welcome him in
To their hearts
Listening
To the spoken word

Open the door


Let in the light
Into thy temple
Of eternal night.

Listen
Listen to the voice within

47
Guiding your feet, uplifting,
Transporting your soul
Across the wasteland of eternity
should your flesh be torn
by desire
then the cross which you carry
will raise you higher
as your flesh is bound
to return to the land
from which new fruit will fall
if the soil be fertile, warm and wet
the seed will sprout
and the flame of humanity not go out
in the winds of doubt
seeds of time sew
in the wasteland of the desert
where the tempter wove
a tapestry of words
to enslave the knave who there would go
without a cross to his own loss
blowing in the wind
and rain falling on sand
the desert blooms
watered by an unseen hand
some guy wandering by
a lake
telling fisherfolk
where to cast their net
to catch the word
past over
houses untouched
bearing the sign
of a fish or Egyptian cross

48
roads from the East
bearing gifts sublime
unfolding passage
of time
taken to cross
the desert which blooms
as the shadows of the camel trains loom
on the horizon.

In memory of Vincent & Theo


Listen

Listen to the fragility of life


In dynamic equilibrium

Suspended on the spider’s web


The world waits
As all spins
In harmony with Nature’s whims and fancies which flower
By design upon the hour
The plan to fulfil in time
Unfold tomorrow’s tale told
Through time
A microcosm of life divinely poised
Between being and a void
Suspended
From a tree
Waiting out eternity
Whilst down below
The seasons come and go
Synchronised
The movement of the dance turns in the breeze
Whilst one slip may cause the thread to break
The instant pause
A second
Freeze

49
Like a painting
Of rooks, sky and fields through which three pathways lead
Whilst one turn may take
The dynamic equilibrium to pause
And break
Its evolutionary rhythm

Whilst the seasons come and go

The bullet flies


A rook croaks, another caws
A shot rings out
Is echoed
By a shout
An animal lies dieing
Whilst those around
Do not cease trying to revive
The emaciated figure
With lanky stride
Who strode the earth to give
A vision of beauty to those who live
Whilst he lay dieing
Those around
Did not cease trying
To stem the flow

Whilst the seasons come and go

The tide did ebb


Life drained back to the land
Once strode with awe
At what the visionary saw
Matter dissolving into space
Lines curved through linear time and place
Laughter, contentment, peace of mind
Rejection by the visionary’s kind
Hearted fellows who clung to the raft crossing time in a vessel which leaked without a mast
Nor sail
At the whim of nature and the mercy of gales
Storms and hail
Shattering the glass
Reflected dynamic equilibrium evolving through time
Fragile
Interwoven, interconnected threads
Transporting across the fields
The one who had fell
Whilst the rooks cawed
Caught on canvass
A message was left
To the future to decipher as best it could

50
Now that the visionary never would
Tell more than he could
In his gesture
Of faith
Taking his life
Away from his fellows
Whilst the seasons come and go
A lantern was lit
To outshine the stars
Shedding music and light
To animate the dance
Far into the night
The vessel drifts
At the mercy of currents, reefs and rocks
Guided by the lamps
Of those before who had lit
Lanterns to show
The animal who’d died was no less than a god
Clothed to hide his nakedness
Body torn from mind
Experiencing the duality of being
A man
Moulded from clay
To which he will return
One day
The fragile thread will break
A single slip
Is all it takes
To break the glass
Into splintered shards
Each of which will slit
A thousand threads which will no longer unravel
A million pathways down which one will never travel
To get to where one is now
Looking at the stars
And wondering how
It came to pass
That you should be travelling on this very same path
With me, listening to the wisdom of the word, beneath an undesignated tree
At an unspecified hour
Watching the unfolding
Of the fragrance of a flower
In the breeze blown, borne
Across the war torn promised land
From which all men are moulded as they stand
To face the vagaries of life, the cast of the dice
The music of stars, of life,
On canvass captured
By an animal, enraptured by the beauty of the vision
Transmitted to act as a beacon of light for those in the wake of the craft

51
Crossing the ocean with neither rudder nor mast
Nor compass save the stars
Gliding past in the bible black night
To the tune of words in sight on the printed page
Transforming animals to gods under the sun’s rays
To hang on a thread in a state
Of dynamic equilibrium moving at a rate
Of knots
Sounding the depths of the still waters of the soul still unfathomed in still life
Or death
For the dieing animal still breathes a last breath
As he’s transported by his fellows
Back to his second best bed where he’ll lie for an hour
Before a mass is said
In the church he’d painted
With a vision in his head
Who can tell
Except the figures on the canvass he knew so well
How they lived, laughed, loved, cried
But in the bearing of the message, died.

Listen

Listen
Listen as thy breathing slows
Listen as you remember to control
Your breath
Linking you with life
And death
Listen in the silence of the night
Beneath the silvery reflection of the full moon so bright

52
Beneath the trees
The river flows relentlessly
Towards the sea

Listen for ‘tis strange to hear


The story which will reach thine ear
Listen for ‘tis mighty strange
Beyond the scope of psychoanalysis
Far into another realm

Of the divine
Whose kingdom to see
You first must die

To live
For God to give your all
Whilst receive
God within your soul
Open the door
Welcome the whole
Bow down and pray
For love hath entered the same way
Be true
For though it seem strange
Thou be born anew
Not of the flesh
But of the spirit, blessed
To bear
The weight of the word
To carry you far
Whilst you wander
As you will
Wonder at the wickedness which still
Pervades the planet
For good or evil both come to nought
Once discounted by the future bought
By thirty pieces of gold
A man betrayed
His spirit bought
By greed for what he had no need
Yet had he not done the deal
There would be no tragic ending to this tale
Of love betrayed
With the awareness of the one to die
Hanging beneath a heavenly sky
Whilst the guards waited, rolling dice
A tunic was torn
Whilst the waiting went on
Shadows shortened, the sun rose high
Vinegar was proffered, wine turned sour,

53
Reflecting the movement
Of the hour
A fourth man arrived to wait
And watch from outside the city gate
Crows cawed, men laughed, at the crown of thorns
For thus the duality of existence is
The flesh dies, whilst the spirit lives
Men die, gods live, though both are one
The flesh is tempted by images past
The spirit struggles to rise at last
Buoyed by the waters of belief
Drunk by children who see
As do those who died yet live
Born again in the spirit to give
Light to the word, that the light be heard
Listen
For ‘tis so
Hard to swallow this truth I know
Too well
For though I live, I heard my death knell
On the hour strike
As harrowing Hell, I went whilst many wept
Some slept in vain
I write these words, I call thy name
In vain
For vanity pushes one to act
Out the play
Re-enact what he has to say to win
The approval of his other self
Who stands watching, waiting
For roles to be reversed
Masks to change with lines rehearsed, repeated since the dawn of time
The spirit of love made manifest through man
Listening to the music of the flute of Pan
Whilst the full moon moves silent through the sky
Alone a shepherd wonders why
The sky be so bright, casting shadows into the night
The world spins
Change is constant, shadows stretch
Into the distant horizon of time
Frozen, in an image, to portray the crime
Redeemed
By compassionate acts
As the Master washed the feet of his followers who trod
The same land from which he was made God,
Crucified, waiting whilst he died
To rise
With the mist on the morning tide
As the river runs into the sea
Washing upon the shore of life’s mystery

54
Revealed
By
C
N
N
Concealed
From those seeking riches and wealth
Whilst those who serve
May get the reward
Which they deserve
And those who open their hearts even more
Will be charged to carry the burden of yore
Free choice
Listen
Or not
To his Master’s voice.

Listen

Listen
Listen to the silence of the dark night.

55
Listen. It is growing steadily light
Joy is coming. The invisible is made
Visible.

Listen as I sing praise to the Lord


For I was cast down yet he raised me up
Into the pit had I fallen
My soul was in the grave
Yet did not remain there but rose
With the dawning of the morning
Mists evaporate in the warming sun
As my feet move up the mountain
In awe I gaze around upon the beauty of the scene
Higher my feet take me to a lonely landscape
Where I walk alone
Contemplation fills my heart with gratitude
For I recall the pain of passion, suffering, death
When my soul was flighty, my spirit knew no rest
In ecstatic love I wandered, following the caprice
of desire
Yet now Lord I give thanks for thou hast found me
Wandering far from the path
Yet now Lord I give thanks for I hast found thee
Deep within my heart
Yea Lord thou art my rock and foundation
For surely we will never part
Amen.

56
Listen
For in the listening lies the journey
Within the words
Winding and wandering as one explores
The undergrowth of the mind
Blind, lost,
With neither compass nor map
But only as guide
Listening
To the silent voice follow yet forge a path on the
computer screen reflecting the meanderings of my
soul seeking questions to escape the labyrinth in
which I was turning with no bearings except those
provided by listening
Listening to the rhythm of life
Pulsating through the universe
The drum beat of being which pervades time and
space
Listening
And finally discovering
A voice
Within
To follow
The word
Displaying compassion and kindness
To all which is alive

57
And functions doth perform
Where a slight change
Will echo throughout time
A dynamic equilibrium of the universe moves
And you can hear it
When you listen
To your own
Heart
Beat.

Listen
Listen to the silence
Listen to the silence

58
Before
The beginning
Primordial silence flowing through the empty universe
Silence resounding
Before the beginning
Broke the silence
With a word

Followed by another
Silence
Impregnating the universe with opposite pairs
Being and non-being balanced
Heard in the silence
between
the words waiting
the words weighting
the words awaiting
the silence speaking words
Listen
To the silence
Between words
Flowing
With emotion
Heard in the silence
Of the words not spoken
But heard

Between the words


Weighted
To be weighed
On the scales of justice
On judgement day
When the actions will speak louder
Than the silence
Between the words
And the tree will be
Recognised
By the fruit designating it to be
The burden bearing soul
Burdened being borne
Silence
Resonating
Between the words
Of wisdom which wait
Which weight
The silence
Of the wait
Of the weight
Of the play

59
On words
And silences
Impregnated with communion
With the divine
Silence
Of the word.

Listen

Listen to your dreams


Listen to the silent scenes
Of your dreams
Sweet means
Of disentangling the screams…

Listen
If every straight line be the arc of an infinite circle
What doth that circle encircle
But that which it excludes?

Thus the love of the Lord is both limitless yet lies contained within the heart of the true
believer who, offended that he must bear such a weight which transports him in ecstatic
jubilation of divine love, seeks to unburden himself by shedding light to enlighten the
pathway to be trod by those suffering a similar affliction, or lameness, who, in their turn, will
seek to lighten their load by lighting the pathway leading to the soul, or fish, found within the
still silent waters within which all is but a shadow of an eagle in flight crossing the desert
sand falling through an hour-glass reflected in the silence of being. Alone.
Fleeing the pain the afflicted seeks union, earthly or spiritually. Yet whilst earthly love doth
crumble spiritual love remains. All encompassing union with the divine reflects itself in a love
of all beings, all of which possess a soul of equal weight and worth in the eye of the
beholder…in the I of the beholder. Aye. I.

60
Listen

Listen
Listen to the silent word
And hear
The silence between the words
Not heard

Listen
Listen to the silent word
And wonder
At the transformation created
By listening
To the word
Unheard

Listen
Listen to the silent written word
Stained with the blood of humanity
Fed
At the last supper
Before
It was too late
To change
The flow
Of fate
Beyond
Redemption, a city gate, stood, open,
Waiting one to pass
On a beast of burden
An ass
Carrying a man to be crowned king
A crown of thorns to be borne
By a beast of burden torn
In twain

61
As in the middle he hung
Between two thieves
Whilst angels sung
A stranger limped, unseen
To listen to the words
Of the scene
Enacted
A scream
Was seen
In the word
Awaited which went
Unheard.

Listen

Listen to the word

Listen to the silence

Understood, heard

Between the words

Waiting

To be said

Spoken, read.

Listen,

Listen to the silence of speech

Rehearsing reflections to reach

Back into the past

Reform from memory the last

62
Supper, scream or scene

Which fell

In to place

A piece of the puzzle

Of the human race

Against time begun

With a word

Of love

To resound

Rebound beyond barriers of time and space

Catching the imagination

In time to face

The future past

By on the other side

Unaware

Of the silent pain which cried

Out

On the cross

Recorded by a lame stranger

At a loss

For words

To fit between

The silences

Reporting

What had been seen

63
And heard

In the scream

Which shook

The tree

Be it apple or fig

Fruit fell

Through time and space

Creating the story

Of the human race.

Listen

And as you listen observe

A particle of dust

Which in an expanding universe floats

Through waves

Which crash on the shore

Whilst you

Listen

You become aware

Of the beauty

Which you see

Everywhere

Change flows with the waves

Which wash on the shore

64
Whilst you listen

You change

Beginning a fresh

Life

In death

Reborn in the spirit

Rather than the flesh

Which tempts, which calls with a word, between the silence of love and the sea of emotion
welling up in thee there falls

The word you hear which to you is


So dear
You fear
So await
Your fate fashioned free

Beneath the shadow


Of a tree
Which falls upon the lame
Stranger to begin again the tale told
Since days of old and yore
Silent shadow washed up
Upon the sand swept shore
Where words were writ
To be erased unless the flame lit
Shone still
Life
Long
Love
Which flows wherever Man goes
Holding high
A mirrored reflection
Up to the sky
Strewn stars which spin
Through the universe which grows as you
Listen to the word which transforms
The bearer to the borne
Again
In the mind
Grasps the silence between the words seen by the blind
Listening
To the transporting word

65
Forged race
Against the waves which wash
Clean the blood stained sands on the shore.

Listen

And in the act

Of listening hear

The changes in yourself which do appear

To form

A new

You

Beneath the mask you wear

Out

Shedding

The years

Shorn

You see

The renewed, recreated, you

Write

Wrongs

In songs

Reflect

On the new you recreated in the search

For the truth

Between the words.

66
Listen

Listen

Has the creative act of seeking to re-collect in words


Become a drug I need to feel release
To enter a world of geometric peace
Constructing a castle by the sea upon a sand-strewn shore
Where I walk to watch the reflection of an open door
Into the darkness of my soul into which I delve
Seeking spiritual treasures which may lie to hand
To be rescued from the cavern of forgetfulness where they rest
Amidst the cob-webs waiting to ensnare
Perhaps ‘tis the sense of danger which tempts me there
To overstep the mark, root around, like Gollum, in the dark
Chambers Time forgot, searching for the light of lanterns
Of haw, seeking to decipher messages encrypted in symbols
Which portray the inner landscape of the self
Depicted artist forging his very soul, radiating from his being
Connected with the reality of what may seem to be a dream
Drug stimulating thought provoking pictures from the past
To re-surface in the present form to speak
Providing answers to questions which Man may seek
To answer to comprehend the reality of existence on earth
Through myths and works of art …

Listen

Listen to your heart and see


How love guides,
For spiritual love lifts up
Allowing the lover to journey safely through flames of passion
Seeking the Lord becomes sought

Enters the welcoming soul of the seeker who sees


The beauty of being alive in a wondrous world
Where love can be communed in a smile
And inner resources mined for the benefit of mankind

For Man to see – he’s more than a monkey swinging through a tree
He’s a god – and his actions will be judged by humanity

For all work for the greater good of the collective neighbourhood
When it thrives each individual is more likely to survive
The ravages of time and tide.

For Man is a god who dies

67
Existing for a while
On the horizon of time
checking the scales
and the sails
with an eye on the weather
and a weather eye open for a fellowship to form
to help the craft weather the storm.

Listen

Love fills the heart


with the wonder
of the word.
Have you heard?

Listen

Focus
Get back on track
Position yourself
True
North in view
Single-minded
Prioritise
Listen
To words of wisdom
From other skies
To your being
You
Saying
What you do
And doing what you say
You do
Be true
With no secrets to hide
Because you lied
Cheating yourself
In vain

68
Attempting to create
A name of renown
For vanity’s sake
Your face will reflect
The truth which your soul
Will re-collect
In the depth’s of your being
You
Need to be focussed
On track
Committed
To arriving at a destination
In the dark
With only the candles
From other skies
To show you the pathway
They better not be lies
You will tell
Others will see
Straight from the smell
Of the scent in the breeze
Whispering its way
Through silent trees
Which wait
To carry the word
A cross
Shadows which fall
Still life lingers
Upon a hill
Where dice lay cast
With the skin of the serpent
Which spoke
Arousing passions
Which awoke
The dragon within
Causing the crowd to laugh
At your nakedness
Whilst you in vain shed
Floods of tears
With the words you had read
But heeded not
For in vain
Considered the snake slain
As it slithered from its skin
Into the dragon within
You
Can conquered be still
If you will
Consider your destination true
Anew

69
Be carried by the burden of love which bears fruit which falls
To the ground
See the might of mother nature who wrought
The word
From nought
Duty bound
Freedom of thought
Word and deed
For the truth will be seen in the seed
Blowing in the wind
In the breeze
Through the trees
Where one prayed
On his knees
Whilst his followers fled
Swords were drawn
Whilst rivers were to flow red
With the blood
Remembered in the wine
From water turned
By the drug of love which burns
Intoxicating as it turns
Water into wine
Drunk in the silent communion
Of the mind
Seen by the blind
Man who saw
The beauty of being
True
To your self
Anew.

70
Listen

Listen to your heart


For words cannot express
The beauty which lies
Within

The silence of your soul


Which weighs and guides
You home.

For life is but a spiritual journey


The body undertakes
Whilst the undertaker
Waits
Whilst the weight be borne
And in the bearing
Bear fruit to feed
The undertaker’s need
For love to lighten the load
shared
in silent communion
with the Word
within
the answer heard
the questions raised
in the silent echo
beyond the grave
stones which stand
in silence
across the land
forged form
the body takes
whilst for love
the heart
aches.

Listen to your soul


For silence speaks
Louder than words
Which weight.

71
Listen

I have been
Scraping
A living
Eking out
Making do
With my breath

Without which
I would have had a hard
Time

Just breathing
In
Out
In
out
like the sound
of the sea
unceasing

I have tried
To explore the pathways of the wise
Only to find
The undergrowth of my own imagination
Denied
Access to the higher echelons
Of the tide

Governed by the moon


I have lied

72
To myself to no avail
The sea pounds the shore
Wearing thin
Falsehood and sin

But what if the truth lies


Within
The breathing
Out
In
Without which naught remains
But tales
Foretold
In the telling
Of old
Wives, poets and priests
Politicians and tea-leafs

Telling
The tale
Told
Undersold
In the sale
Of the century’s tail
Ender
On a bender
In time
To rhyme
Standing the words in line
Whilst wondering why
A.D.B.C
Meet
Where they do
On the shore
I wander
As I wonder
At the beauty of the world spinning in space
Despite the follies
Of the human race
To which I belong
Amidst the happy, loving, murderous
Throng
Listening
Singing
The same
Song
Between the sheets.

73
Listen

Listen to the words in thy heart


Weigh them to wonder
What thou art
Become
Another, by following guides
Absorb their wisdom
Into thy stride
Learn from the path which they trod
Their vision of God
Transmitted through time
To thy pathway to the Lord
Who will seek you
If you love his Word.
And keep it, following guides
Feeling God’s presence, by your side
Helping you grow, in wisdom
A pathway will show
The way to be trod
To discover in yourself
The love of God
For Mankind
Listen to his word
And thee he will find
Transformed
Unscathed by flames of desire
Uplifted by love, rising higher
Thyself wilt thou see
Serving thy fellows
With humility helping others overcome
Difficulties on the journey begun.

74
Listen

Listen

Listen as you open yourself to the Lord


Welcome him into your abode
Where you dwell on the lightness
You feel in your heart where he dwells
Though extends beyond you, all encompassing, all embracing, love
Encircling that which is encircled, reflecting that which is reflected
Moves among men, houses, children, all things living,
Is mist on the sea in the morning, is memories both individual and collective,
Is the hangman’s noose, murderer’s knife, blood stain of the victim slain
Conscience of the murderer who waits imprisoned in his wait
Drop of wine, meal shared, friendly word
Oft’ recognised in a smile given and returned
Voice of the drowning sailor carried on the winds to his loved one
Waiting, who knows what has happened before hearing it on the late night news
Kiss betraying action transcending time as the messenger be consumed by love divine
His ego emptied, the vacuum filled, with the infinite weight of the universe which uplifts as
on wings
The body which it bears in the breeze blowing between the Olive trees
Where swords clash, an ear falls, the word goes, unheard in the silence of the darkest night
Stars move through the sky, the earth turns, waves crash, the wind blows, bullets fly
Through the flesh of innocent victims waiting in line to buy bread
Cut down dead their corpses stare at the sky whilst survivors wonder why
The wind has stopped blowing,
The wind has stopped flowing between fellow travellers under the night sky
Following the same stars, climbing the same dunes, slipping in the same sand
As the same sea crashes on the same shore tossed ship which is sinking under the weight of
the wait
Which is
Interminable
A shifting
Of foot
A rhythmic balancing forward moving motion,
Left, right, left, right ad infinitum, undoubtedly more efficient than swinging from branch to
branch of the now no longer existing tropical rain forest, whilst the arms move, maintaining
the same pace, though in opposite direction to the aforesaid feet
Whilst wondering
Why
The wind has calmed, the clouds dispersed, fields of blue sky flooding the landscape
blossomed with the flowers of Spring though it be but winter,
But sill the march continues, left, right, left, right,
All advance into the same shadowy night
Whilst the owl hoots, dives on its prey
The seas roll on the shore
You breathe,

75
In
Out
In
Out
The same air
Shared
A smile
Whilst a child stops to help another who has fallen by the wayside
A child
Helps
Another
Whilst his elder brother waits
Analysing in vain
The empty reasons of shame showered in stones upon the silent bones which wait
Whilst inscriptions carved in stone slip beneath the spider’s web
Whilst the moon grows, cries, takes the form of the fingernail of both the child and soldier
who died in the cross-fire of bullets which hailed
Mounting from 345 to well over a thousand in less than ten days of mindless killing engaged
In the name of
Something which children can’t understand, though children help, each other with a helping
hand
Some
Smile
Of love which reigns
Whilst salt stained tears fall
The desert blooms
With love
Once you open your door
To the Lord.

Love
Is the dew on a rose in the mist in the morn as the light filters, flickers is filtered into a
spectrum of colours all of which together constitute a single colour
As it is with all religious pathways which all meet at the same summit beneath the star flung
sky.

The artist is both a child and an adult. As a child he seeks to have fun, enjoyment in the
instant immutable fleeting passing whilst as an adult he seeks to leave a silence in the passing
of words to enlighten the wayfarers following on other pathways leading to the same silent
summit where the wind blows with no answers except those heard in the word-struck silence
of the dumb-founded poet found wanting whilst waiting prepared.

For waiting prepares.


Expectation aroused.
Curiosity temps.
But in the waiting is a transcendence, uplifting, overcoming all.

Love of the Lord surpasses all understanding.


Though coals may burn thy feet thou may traverse thy days unscathed.
Thanks be to God.

76
Listen

“There’s allus something.”

Conditioned our lives by Karma be


‘Tis only by disciplined love of the Lord
Open, with no secrets, that we may travel in safety
from being harmed by ourselves
seeking more than that which we have been blessed.

Contented be ye. Let your spirit rest.

A grasshopper can be held in the palm of the hand


Whilst its song heard throughout the land

Such is the nature of the mystics’ song


A single voice produced by an infinite throng
In silent communion day and night long.

Once Man was attentive to his world


Listening to its spirit flowing within him, through him,
For he was but a part of that world in which he was obliged
To listen
To survive
Every petal opening had a meaning
Every wind blew a tale
Of a great Spirit in the Sky
Man studied the stars and wondered
Why
The brim was overflowing with beauty
Flowing
Between beings
Aware
Of each other
Communicating
Across Time and Space
Dreaming
Transmitting the past to the future in tales told
A millionfold
In images borne
To be heard
Whilst the backdrop unfolded
Of the world
Within a world

77
In which the spectator was actor
In the created image of creation stored
In the stories storing the store
Of silent images
Of the imagination day-dreaming during the nightmares dreamt whilst piecing together
To gather
The fragments
Re-collected
Restored
To life
In the childlike process of creation
Unravelling the meaning of the messages
Drawn
Carved
Painted
Transmitted in the breathing
Blowing
Through the didgeridoo sounding ”om”
“om”
“om”
om
om
om
om
om
resonating
throughout time
from within
to the universe
in a symphony of sound.

Give us this day


Our dreams of tomorrow
Transcending the present
Into a future cast
To catch two fish
For the morrow’s journey to last
A lifetime fishing
In the dreams past.

78
Seeking the Light
He found me
Alone and desolate
Consoled me
With the light
Of the Word
Made flesh
Forged future
Fore-gotten
Gain
Of the word with no name
Known to all men
Dolmen
Standing stone
Circles
Parallel
Placed
At energy spots
Where flows
Energy
To heal
And re-store
To life
The sick
Quick and the dead
With a word
Shattering jolt of energy restoring electrical impulse awakening the mind to the infinite
possibilities of life flowing from living beings through one another to one another at dawn
Between night and break
Of day
Upon the sea-shore listening to the movement of the waves washing back and forth whilst the
moon lit the sky silver and clouds rolled by.

Imagine
Being
Born
A second time
Without having died
Yet being
Dead
To the word and the flesh

79
One’s ego consumed
In a childlike state
Of innocence
Creating
For Heaven’s sake
Holding fast
To a lifeline flung
In the past
By fellow sufferers
For the future to form
In the wise words
Of the second born
Seeking a path
To express in words
The silent suffering beauty heard in the music of stars and the flight of birds.

My heart has become a slave


In the hands of my beloved
A pen scratching words in the sand
An open door,
An empty room filled with the perfume
Of the Lord
Gathering dust
In a cob-web of the mind created vision of the blind
Who lead to the beat of a heart and a drum
Children having fun
In the field
Of the Lord.

80
Under the cypress trees
I watch the crescent moon
Rising high
Waves curve upwards
Before breaking on the shore
I listen
To the rhythmic rise
And fall
Of the sea
I am swept away
In the arms of my lover
We become one
We come
Together
Under the cypress tree. Listen 21jan

Listen
Close your eyes
Put your hands together
Meditate

Drift

Away into dreaming


Dreams
See reality as I is
And not what it seems
To be
Dream
Dream the world
Your life
Dream you
Dream the events for which you strive
Come true
Dream
Dream of the future which seems
Better than before
Dream of a ‘morrow which is
Of yore
Dreaming
Come true
As sure
As blue
Sky connects
Heaven with earth
A chain of rosary beads
Mother
Nature

81
At work
In our dreams
Which make
The future
Not what it seems
In our dreams
Of a better earth
Where North and South are not
Divided
By the cartographer’s pen
But are one
Sun-blessed humanity singing
The same song
To different tunes
Writing
With different runes
From a crumbled tower
Of Babel
Which fell
Upon the hour
It takes
For Man to rise
From Finnegans wakes
Week
T
Ford
Car pollutes
Congestion fills
The auto-routes
Tolled
In the telling
Charges bought
Against a Man
Who had done nought
But said
The truth
As he saw it
Lying
In an infinite number of chambers under the same roof
Beneath a weather-cock
Which turned
As Mother Nature scorned
The ideas produced
By the pen
Induced
By the word which when-T
Unheard
In the silence
Of the symphony of stars which sang
To the echo of the silence which rang

82
Through the minds of Man
On the hour
The clock struck
The silence
Of a tall black tower beside the silvery sea stretching beyond the boundaries of infinity to be
Lost
With neither compass nor map
Spells the ingredients
Of a mishap
Or misfortune
Told
In the telling
Tales of old
Found
To save souls by the pound
Of flesh
Unfolded
Unfurled
In the star spangled banner
Burned
Books which rise
The spirit of awareness
Higher than the skies
From which stones rain
On the poor
Again
And
Again
Intifadah
Reigns
Stones
On the poor
Slain in vain for a Lord with no Name
But Love
Charity
Faith
Borne from above.

Listen

Be matter waves
Energy
Love
Saves

Be matter love
Waves
Energy

83
Gives

Be matter energy
Waves of love
Flow

Energy be matter
Love
Waves

Matter be love
Energy
Waves

Rise and fall


With the breathing
Required
To love
Life
Reciprocally
After death
Mirrored the image
Borne
In the present
From past to the horizon
Of time
Torn
Time worn
Tales
Of love
Which heals
Fills the cup
Of life
Drunk up
To the brim
Yet which remains
Beneath the surface skin
Cut
By cubists in vain
Seeking
The word with no name
Known to all men
Amen
Which blooms like
Bloom
In the desert
Darkness at noon
Negates
The word
Waits silent weights

84
Listen

Still
Life
Flows
Nature
Dead on a canvass
Grows, lives, gives,
Emotions live, vibrate through time and space
Still
Life
Lives
Gives a reflection which resounds
In the energy which abounds
In grace
Filled space which flows
Which comes
And goes
Comes and goes
Flows

With the sea, the river, the wine, the word


Divine
Split in the instant of time
Which flows
With the flow of love
Sublime.

Listen

Plants grow
From non-being
to being
combining to form
matter
in form
healing
energy
borne

from the sun

warming rays
penetrate with love life’s days

85
Listen

Listen to the sounds which surround


And wait, listen to the sound
Listen to the rhythm
Of the boat
Rising and falling in tune with the waves
Creaking and groaning
Music enslaved to Nature’s calling
The ghost in the machine
Predisposed Man’s falling unseen
From a garden
Whilst flying
Too close to the sun
The wax melted
Man had to run
To survive
Listening to Nature
To keep alive
The current flowing
From earth to sky
With Man in the middle
Questioning why
He was but a part
Of the jig-saw puzzle
Of a great work of art
Growing through time which it included
All embracing
Being
The sum of infinity
Reduced to the eye
Of a needle to thread
Containing the sum
Of the equation aforesaid
Being
Equal yet infinite
All containing whilst contained
In the eye of a needle
Threading time
With linear language on a line
Passed
To the future
Present
Past
Second which flows
With the music

86
The universe bestows
In the movement of the stars, of the sea, of birth, death, drawing free
Souls from bodies
To float
In a sea of spiritual awareness
Of a boat
Crossing the sea
Of being
To eternity reflected in the waves which flow
Upon the shore
Of the instant captured by listening
Through an open door to the way
To the light spreading
At the break of day
Night falls elsewhere
In the turning
Of the tide
Is a constant flowing
Guide
To the universe borne
In the heart
Of all being
Both one and infinite
Encircling the encircled arc in a line
Of language listened to through time

Listen

Listen

Listen to the children whose voices are heard


Echoing into the future as free as a bird
Flies through the sky with no care in the world
Yet have to be carried for others to guide
down infinite paths which time can not divide
all leading to one- both son and Man
duality splits open the awareness of self which sits
at the heart of being both father and son
captured for all time being fleeing.

87
Listen

Listen to the silence amongst the ruins of what thy art


For to rebuild thyself this silence will be heard not to part
From what thy hast become – both an archetypal Man and Son.

See the blue of eternity in the fields


The lily of the valley which yields
Cures for many ills
Concentrated energy in pills
Yet seek the source of the flow
If wisdom thou seeketh- thy self to know.

Thanks be to God.

Listen

Stand outside thyself to see


Thyself
But a shadow on the wall of Time
The trap of death is sprung
But thy hath already passed that way unscathed

Thanks be to God.

88
Listen to the silence before sunrise
The world sleeps
The city sleeps
The town sleeps
The village sleeps
The household sleeps
You sleep

But wait
Listen longer and wonder
Doth a city ever sleep
Doth it ever stop
The town may look quiet, sleeping
But maybe there’s someone who could not
Fall asleep to find
Repair, restore body and mind
With the energy of love which flows
In the silent heart which knows
Contentment
Being blessed
With a selflessness
Desiring to give
Yet forget the deed

89
Or debt
Volunteering
To serve humanity’s cause
In vain
Striving to carry the light to a point yet to be
named
In three languages carved
Facing both one direction and an infinite choice of
pathways
At a time which neither existed yet exists
Beyond time
Beyond timelessness
As a new current flows from the meeting of
streams all of which contributing
Create anew
Riverrunningflowofthewordsusedtodesignateyou.
Listen

Ordain thyself with religion


Whichever you choose
Follow its precepts
And rules
Showing the way
Forward, through another day.

90
Listen

Listen to the motion of the stars


Listen to the scudding clouds
Listen to the wind
What news it brings
From afar
Listen to the silence
In your heart to hear
The opening of a flower draw near
Being
A flower unfolding fragrance
Draws near
Bees from afar
Guided as if by a star
Wise men walked
In silence listening
To the universe which talked
In their hearts they knew
Themselves to be
Travellers from across a sea
Of sand dunes stretching forth through time and
space as the falling sand slipped into place the

91
hour-glass reflected shadow keeping pace with
camels they climbed rolling sand dunes of the
mind which rose and fell with the universe’s
dynamic equilibrium poised in motion the camels
strode whilst the travellers listened to the creaking
load in their hearts they heard the current flow
bringing news of the word they sought to know
The path to tread
To a cross
Road of cultures
Marking a point in time and space
Reflecting the beginning
Borne in the word
Bearing ideas and thought
Which pictogram and word both wrought
Forging tales anew
As the travellers talked
Languages from lands long left
Behind sea of dunes and mountain cleft
Rising towards Tibet
Snow-capped peaks
Where currents of thought ran deep
Through Time’s span
The travellers heard tales of a word began
In the beginning
beginning time
Unravelled in the present

92
Flowing through space
In silence
Heard
In the hearts
Of the travellers who knew
Other forgeries equally true
As language forges thought
Wrought in words
Writ
In Sanskrit
Hieroglyphs carved
Chinese characters printed
Transported
Through time and space
To a cross
Roads
Reflecting the flow
Of a universal being
Endowed with spirit
Which flows
Through space-time being
The sum of an infinite number of parts
Reflecting the reflection of the word
Listened to by the travellers whilst they listened in
awe to time-worn tales of yore
Story
Your

93
Story
Told
For you
By a story-teller forging
Old tales
Anew.
Amen.
Thanks be to God.
Listen23b

Listen23b

Listen
Listen to this odd fragment that I’ve heard
The Dalai Lama
Was reincarnated
In Bethlehem found
By travellers listening to the sound
Of the verb
Incarnate
In every word
Spoke
From the heart
Opening a door
Into the dark
94
Awakening
Awareness
Brings light
Hearted laughter in flight
The imagination alights
The flame of desire
Of Man’s funeral pyre

“follow me”, he said


give up your ego and go
tell the world what you know
to be so
be it true
I can’t tell
Anymore than you
Few who have fathomed
It out for yourselves
Are aware
Of the point where
Travellers met
Word for word
unburdened silence
Dumb-founded
Idea grams sent
Through space and time converging on a point
Where cultures crossed, converged
At the vortex of being

95
A beginning borne
In the reincarnate word
Made flesh
As time and space converge
In the universal flow
Of laughter
And smiles
Sign-language aped
Mimicked in the mirror
Of the soul
Bearing gift
Of awareness
Stole
In the fruit of the flame of desire
Rising to a crescendo
As two form one
Love
Flows
In the fertilized egg which grows
In the womb
Giving birth to the cry
Of travellers asking why
A tunic would be torn
In two
As night follows day
Love flows unfathomed from a fathomless flow
Of space and time being incorporated

96
Within the body borne
From womb to tomb
Whilst the spirit like a river flows
Alleviating the suffering of Man’s woes
Though whence and where no man knows
Whilst feeling it in passion’s throes
Of love
Which bear
The weight of the light across
The journey crossed
By travellers wise
To the fortunes of man’s demise
A beast of burden clothed to mask
The understanding of the questions asked
Of one’s self torn
In two
The tunic is split
Though a patchwork it be
Common to all
Humanity
Hiding behind
A fig-leaf found
On a tree
Where apes still swing free
Of the chains
By which Man enslaves
Man

97
As egos grow
Out of control
Travellers listen
To what they have
Herd
In the ideograms in the spaces between the
characters painted on the papyrus in hieroglyphs
carved in stone to crumble to be buried amongst
the dunes which curve to a crescendo whilst love
flows converging bodies meet the climax where
space and time fuse to form one continuous
flowing current of energy which consumes the ego
so the travellers stand in a trance like state of
quietude aware only of the infinitesimally small
point which Bethlehem is bound to become as the
waves of the universe roll the sands of time into
dune formed crescendos of love which ripple forth
into the starlit silence of the night following day
which has broken upon a lake where two fish
caught are sufficient to feed five thousand souls a
multitude of times throughout time as the travellers
contemplate the myriad of words caste into the
pool of consciousness where they sink into the
depths of the unconscious only to resurface in
refurbished form appropriate to the culture of the
time being in which they are borne to bear the
message of love which fills the Springtide air

98
blowing in the wind to which the travellers hark
aware of the silence and need for language to
lighten the dark passage of time which flows in the
hearts and mindful souls of those who wait, awake,
whilst they watch two birds in flight cross a lake
amongst mountains in a moonlit night in awe,
listening in silence, dumb-struck by what they saw
to embody the universal spirit of love which flows
beyond time and space within all which is.

Listen 25

99
Listen to the truth which lies
In the silences between the words unsaid
Between the lines
But read

Weigh up the choices which you have on your way


To climb a high mountain you’ll need many guides
Best mirror the actions of those deemed wise
Should you seek to follow the path which they trod
Be sure that the questions which you ask God
Will help illuminate the path to be trod
To Mother Nature lend an ear
Listen and ponder all that you hear
And observe, from the formation of flowers to the flight of a bird
Should you be at sea, be attentive to the harmony betwixt the elements and thee
Currents flow, let yourself be guided by what they show
Take time out to rest and repose, ponder upon all observation shows
Your heart never doubt and each day you’ll be ready to start
Anew, knowing what it is which you have to do
Be prepared, let nothing take you unawares
Not even death which will come, e’en though your journey has but begun
After death, who knows what, if aught, lies ahead?

Listen

Listen

Listen

Listen and reflect

Could it be that we be
Trapped
In the projection of a will
Too powerful and too deliberate to be human?

100
As Justine said?
Trapped like a boat on the sea
Awaiting the wind
Yet slipping fast with the flow
Helplessly drifting further and further out
With the tide
Unable to counter the force of nature which
impassively moves
The tiny bobbing boat ever further from land into
waters that are deep and swirling with eddies and
currents we do not know? Yet what can we do?
Wave? Who to? The radio has gone dead? No ships
pass this way. We pray.
Yes, we who have never gone to church on
Sundays, preferring to prepare our little boat for a
spot of pleasure, we pray.
Yet God hears. God hears us in our chains.
Frightened. Afraid, trembling now as the boat slips
further and further beyond our control.
God comes. God calms. The panic attack over we
see the world anew. God has entered our hearts.
Like a mother reassuring a child woken from sleep
by a nightmare. Like children we seek God.
Finding His presence in our hearts fills us with
tranquillity. We are at peace. Perhaps the current
will continue to drag the boat ever further from the
shore. We shall wait. Whilst waiting God’s love

101
will lift us up. Strengthened we will give fight. Yet
there is nothing to be done, but wait.
Perhaps the morrow will bring a welcome wind to
our sails. We will be saved. Yet it proves nought.
All will seek the Lord in times of trouble and none
will be refused.
Blessed be he that seeketh the Lord when the wind
blows fair for in Him he shalt find great solace.

We were together
In the heart of the city
Watching the river flow
Past beautiful old apartments where once
Different faces had looked out
Over the flowing river
As people had shouted in the street
Napoleon
Louis
Or perhaps earlier
When the scaffolding used in the construction of Notre Dame was
Finally removed
Displaying the beautiful stonework
And weighing of souls
In silence
We wondered
At the beauty we saw
Together
Happy
Asking for nothing more

102
Listen

Listen

Listen to the waves washing


Listen to the movement of the sea
Rising,
Falling
Washing
Incessantly
Whilst all changes
All is in a state of constant change
Flowing
Balancing forces
Out-weighing each other cancelling one
Another out
As the movement continues
The boat rises
And falls with the waves
Which wash away silences between words written
in sand on the shore
Whilst silence remains
The waves wash
Against the shore
Erasing the words written
Between the silences
Which lengthen

103
With the waves
Which wash away the dualism
Between you and I
Between I and we
Elevating the mind
To a union with the whole
Totality of experience
In which the I
Is submerged
In a sea of being
Aware
Of the rising
And falling
Of the boat
Bobbing up and down
In the universe
Flowing
With the tide
Of matter
In waves
Of time
Encircled by emptiness
Flowing
With the particles of emotion
Of love
Between sentient beings
Divine

104
Whilst as one with the Lord
Absorbed in all light
All pervading
Flight
Through the universe of time
Gathering pace
As it hurtles
Through space
Curved
Expanding
Exponentially until time and matter fuse
To form one
Flow
Of energy
Driving life
To grow
From the seeds of the flower of time which fall to
embrace life’s diversity upon the earth’s face
which mirrors that of the moon whose tears fall
and water the desert which blooms
anew
whilst the wind blows
sand
falling in dunes which roll with the rising and
falling waves of time which flow through the
current of energy which goes from being to being
in the instant one knows an awareness of Being

105
part of the whole which flows
with the rise and fall of the boat bobbing sea
of love
which flows
from you
to me
whilst the I
and the we
lie consumed
in a passion
the Lord lifteth up
with compassion
the fallen
angels who bore
a message
to humanity
from afar
flung star
which hung
over a manger
where a Man-child was born
to be the son
of Man
and Woman
whilst the world watched
wise men from the east crossed
carrying gifts from afar

106
for out of Egypt was called the Son
who saw
the beauty of being in the world
awaiting the word
upon which to wait
to be carried
whilst carrying
its weight.

Listen

Rumi cast a stone into a pond which ripples yet today


The reflections cast by fond friends is needed when you begin to draw
Water from a well until one day the reflection you cast rings true
And the face you see peering down the shaft into the depths is you
Then need to unite the faces so that “I” be “we”
And you feel in the uplifting presence of the Lord’s company
Guiding as a forked birch rod enables water to be divined
You experience the rejuvenating power of Love you find
Emanating from the laughs and smiles reflecting those you cast
Whilst the water which you draw sparkles in the sun
Remember the friends in need who to slake their thirst thee seek
Casting stones into a pond which ripples yet when the water be drunk
It’s as intoxicating as wine yet gives an insight which rings clear
As a bell guiding boats through fog, water droplets suspended in the air
Above a pond, which ripples yet today, with the waves of Love which flow
Through the words your friends describe how their blindness was healed
By that which they drew, uplifting the water to you.

107
A bowl of dirty water lay waiting by a wall
Warming in the courtyard, for the use of all
Who may have happened, passing by,
To seek to wash their hands
Beneath the sun-blessed sky.

A ragged beggar approacheth


Ashamed for armed with nought
Food and lodging for the night
Was what he sought.

“Come hither,” cried the water


“What hast thy got to waste?
Let me cleanse thy wounds
Do not turn away in haste.”

“I can not” cried the beggar


“soil thy pure soul”

“Well if not,”cried the water


“who will make thee whole?”

108
Can it be possible that a man can see
The mysteries which flow from Thee
And live in peace without feeling
He has to give
Back the beauty which he bore
When he looked upon that which he saw
Pregnant with awe
He stood
Wondering whether his tongue had been turned to wood
For in the pictures which he painted
There was so little of the truth for which he’d fainted
Swooned, so strong was the sentiment
He felt himself doomed
To bear the burden to his fellows
Awaken the world
Sound the alarm
Flag up a warning message spammed
To those awaiting the word which jammed
In the machine which broke
Down and cried
Upon discovering
The truth
Had lied
With falsehood stood
The test of time
Upon its head
To wait
For the silent word to weight
The scales
To guide
The soul towards its test
For if it won it would be blessed
With the vision to weight
The balance of fate which swings
The trajectory of earth born things
Towards the stars which sing
Of the future which flies on wings
Of time which tell
Of the beauty of the silent word
Which resonates in the wisdom
Of all that you’ve heard
In this tale
Summed up in the action
Of a horny old snail
Seeking to transmit
The genetic code
Of which he was writ
To survive
Only the fit
Will remain alive

109
For he wondered
“who wrote the writ?”
a High Court Judge
is it He that sit
measuring the wait
which swings the balance
bearing weight
borne
in the coming
of the dawn
unfolding
o’er the hills
of England’s green and Pleasant
new Jerusalem
but this?

Listen

Listen to the your heart


Listen to the silence which weights the words
With meaning understood between the words which flood
The silences which wait
In silence whilst the spate of words fills the void
The truth lies
In the silence
Which everybody’s heard.

For love to be made


Manifest
The windows must be wide
Open
Through which the sun will pour

Germinating the seed


If watered with words

It will grow
To be recognised
By the fruit of the action
We sew

Patches together to cloak


The knowledge the word let slip

110
In the silent understanding
Betwixt the cup and lip.

Listen28b

Listen to the gardener who knows


All the conditions must be reunited
For the seeds he sews
to flourish in the time
Mother nature has in mind
The seasons come and go
What conditions are needed
For the word you sew to grow
Into a tree
The fruit of which reflecting
The peaceful harmony of thee
Will sew the pips of time
Flourishing in the second
Birth awakening borne
In the spirit, divine.

Listen

Listen and reflect


That which you hear
And observe
The constant changing
Flow of the world
Returning the gift given
A thousandfold
Unfolding flower
Of Love
Heard in the opening
Silence
Of the word
Weighted burden
Borne
In the reflection
Cast
In the foundry
Of the mind’s
I
Heard
Awaiting word.

111
Listen29

If thou seek
Thou shalt see

Within thyself
The reflection
Of Deity

In human form
Masked
Nakedness hidden

Mortal
To become ashes and dust
Be all that remains
Of passion and lust
Conquered
In Love
Of the Lord
Whom thou shalt see
When seeking deep
Inside of thee.

Listen

Listen to thy heart within


Could it be any other
Than what you hear
Beareth no relation
To the color of thy skin?

Listen, listen to thy dreams


For they will be your guide
To what seems to be true
Beneath the layers and layers of you.

112
Listen29b

Listen to thy heart within


Could it be any other
Than what you hear
Beareth no relation
To the color of thy skin?

Listen, listen to thy dreams


For they will be your guide
To what seems to be true
Beneath the layers and layers of you.

Listen29c

Listen

Listen, abandon thy self


In the love of a higher
Being
Infinite
In wisdom and strength
Speak kindly
To all who come thy way
Listen intently
To what they have to say
For they may well guide you
Upon your way
With their words
Showing a perspective
You had not heard
Tell
Until today
Be told
In tales

113
Of old
Wine in new bottles
Sold.
To quench the thirst
Whilst the truth doth flow
From that which is given
For nought but love
For a higher being
In the heavens above.

Listen

Should thou speak to a woman


Look upon her as thy sister

Should she be younger


Let her climb upon thy shoulders
To see further
Than thyself could fathom
For in her turn and time
Wilt she transport the wisdom
Passed on in line.

Give
For unto the giver shall it be
Given

Let him who receive


Give thanks unto the Lord

Thy God whose peace passeth all understanding.

Thanks be to God.

114
What use art thy
But to help others seek enlightenment and understanding?

Having done wrong


Acknowledge thy transgression
In order to see
The path of righteousness anew.

A heavy heart
Sloweth the journey
Travel light
Taking only a smile with you

Return the smile others give you


And they will help you on your way.

Love flows from a smile


Happiness is lightness of being
Aware of oneself and the beauty of all that which surrounds thee

115
Righteousness overcometh evil
Bu who is to judge one from the other
Except by the fruit they bear?

Om
Listen to the Om
Within thyself Om
Pacifies
As does a didgeridoo
Om
Blowing out
All is in the breathing
As one is part of the universal flow
Om
Om
Om
Repetition takes one into the realm
Of the Almighty.

Om
Om
Om

O graceful one have mercy upon us


For we are blind and know not what we do.

Succour and strength may be had in the Love of the Lord


Hold fast and thy shalt not go astray.

By thy work shalt thou be known


The fruit of thy actions will fall unto thee.

Rejoice with those whom are joyful


Lament with those stricken by grief, sadness of heart and sorrow.

The ways of the Lord are mysterious


No man may fathom them nor explain.

116
Contemplate not the sin most trivial
For from small seedlings great oaks grow.

Actions form being


Birth is but an ornament.

Carry wisdom with thee in thy burden


For it will lift up thy spirit and thy soul.

Only wisdom will help thee traverse temptation


Which is waiting every step of the way.

Be beloved of the people


For they shalt support you on your way.

Seek always what is righteous and good


Shun evil and that which causeth striving and dissent.

Agreement is good for it leads to reconciliation


Love flows from understanding one another.

In the name of the Lord seek thy way


For He seeketh those whom He seek.

Have a plan, know where thy goest


Storms wilt not catch thee unawares.

Fix a destination with a due date


Allowing for deviation and delays.

Love the Lord and He wilt help thee


Be but an instrument of his Word

Open thyself to His beauty


And thyself wilt be insignificant.

117
The voice of the Lord thy God
Shalt reign from generation to generation.

No man shalt cross the word of the Lord


Lest he be struck down by his transgression.

With the transgressors was he numbered


Let him without sin cast the first stone.

Listen to Bach for inspiration


For he understood the symphony of the verb.

Give thanks unto the Lord thy God


For His mercy endureth forever.

Work shalt be thy salvation


For in doing wilt thou be recompensed.

Perform good deeds in earnest


So doing will build the temple of the Lord.

Help thy neighbour and in so doing


Help thyself.

Love is the light of understanding


Seek it out to lighten the darkness in thy heart.

Compassion generates kindness of heart


Let all men be brothers loving one another.

There shalt be no escape


From the knowledge of thy sin.

Burdens may carry thee forward


Lightening thy load with love.

Love of thy neighbour wilt consume thee


Yet in the fire wilt thou be reborn.

The Lord depasseth all understanding


A good name is to be chosen above riches and wealth.

118
A sound heart, body and mind is to be had
By listening to the weight of the word.

The word is silent when compared to the deed


Let the deed speak and the word be silent.

In the silence the truth be hidden


Let the word speak that it be revealed.

Uncover, discover recover


That which is covered never can be.

Healing floweth from self examination


Listen to thy heart and thy woes will be heard.

Hearing may bring recovery


Be belief present that be all.

Hearing leadeth to understanding


Let all men listen with goodness of heart.

Let the sayings of the wise be transcribed


That they may be passed from generation to generation.

That men shall see the ways of the Lord


Suffer children to approach him.

The ways of the Lord be no different


In one country than in another.

Names may vary with usage


Though the spirit is the same.

Om
Om
Om

Exhaling I infuse thy name.

I hear thy spirit resounding


In the flow of which I am part.

Let all men of flesh feel thy spirit


That they shall seek thee out above all other.

Tender is the night


And all that dwell therein loved by all.

119
Let thy days be bounteous and long
And thy cup of understanding overfloweth forever.

Smile and the world will smile with thee


For in thou it will seek a friend.

Love thine enemies and thou wilt have none


All will seek to be thy friend.

Lovers walk in the compass of the Lord


Joined by His awareness;.

Should life be but a thread-bearing necklace of jewels


Be thou strong enough to bear it ?

Better be it to travel naked


With but a name for cloak and love for baton to support yet pass.

120

You might also like