Today's poet

[Old Whippet]

Just want to say that I'm really sorry to have missed this evening's poetry but I'm glad to see that a few of you held the fort and even had in depth discussion about theology, philosophy and science.

like to think I added depth!

[Hes]

you'll be a miss. And all the more reason to keep this thread alive pending your return. Derby Tub has set the bar very high for travelogue poetry. The challenge is yours!

He has set quite a challenge...could I blame deserts or snow and lack of internet do you think? I will try my very best and will be carrying a notebook at all times so even when I can't post, I'll be creating and can send retrospectively...I promise I won't make you sit through 1000s of photos though.

You always add depth to the thread OW!

[Old Whippet]

Letters from Yorkshire - Maura Dooley

In February, digging her garden, planting potatoes
she saw the first Lapwings return, and came
indoors to write to me, her knuckles singing
as they reddened in the warmth.

It's not romance, simply how things are
you out there in the cold, seeing the seasons
turning, me with my heartful of headlines
feeding words onto a blank screen.
Is your life more real because you dig and sow?

You wouldn't say so, breaking ice on a waterbutt,
clearing a path through snow. Still it's you
who sends me word of that other world,
pouring air and light into an envelope so that
at night, watching the same news in different houses
our souls tap out messages across the icy miles.

HHH I love this! I really like how two different lives can complement and appreciate each other. So hopeful and encouraging.

[freckle]

Medication.

Two tablets of lithium 1000 mg,
To keep me level emotionally,
Venlafaxine two capsules 300 mg and red,
To stop me from going off of my head,
Lastly four tablets 250 mg of seroquel,
To stop me seeing gargoyles and creatures from hell,
This is what it takes everyday to keep me sane,
Shhh don't tell the doctors i pour them down the drain.

By Matt Harmston

Disclaimer: All above is true except for the last line in case my consultant is reading this.

Tri this is a class piece i adore it well done! v v good!

[freckle]

Interesting last point there Freckle. At one time I would have worried about referencing "God", (assume it is the Christian / Jewish / Muslim one that most of us think about when that term is used for now), as I would have considered it a nod to the acknowledgement of its existance when clearly there is insufficient evidence to the existance of any supernatural sky god. (I'd love Thor to be real by the way. He'd be great at parties!) But "God" is so part of our culture whether in poetry, song or architecture that it is hard not to stumble upon references. Being a non believer doesn't stop me loving great poetry, or amazing church architecture, or Christmas carols for that matter. And if asked how I can I possibly do that, I normally reply: "Well, I can watch Coronation Street without believing that any of it is true."

excellent point harry! .....well said!

[freckle]

I just bought "Best Poems on the Underground" today and I'd chosen this very one to share tonight. But you jolly went and beat me to it.

So I'll share this one instead...

Happiness
A state you dare not enter
with hopes of staying,
quicksand in the marshes, and all

the roads leading to a castle
that doesn’t exist.
But there it is, as promised,

with its perfect bridge above
the crocodiles,
and its doors forever open.

Stephen Dunn

just lovely HHH thank you

[freckle]

Or, to put it another way...

TRUTH?

by Gerald England

There are 16 million shades of grey
There is no black
There is no white
You have to draw your own line
It may or may not be straight
There are always mitigating circumstances
Judgement can only be based
On passed-down wisdom and self-experience
Stopping to take stock
Is not an option
You can never find yourself
You can only conform or differ
From each perceived image
The cataracts of common sense
Can never be removed
Focusing on reality’s a fallacy

this poem and the preceding debate is yet another reason why i bloody love this thread brilliant!!!!!

[freckle]

Well, looks like i have missed a really good night here on the thread, OW its good to see your back with avengence!, Mossy and HHH a theological debate hurrah! tri more class poetry, DT a one to compete with travelogue wise! and Hes, our lovely Hes...how will we survive? ...keep in touch girl and this one is for you our little artiste....

DON'T GO FAR OFF, NOT EVEN FOR A DAY
Don't go far off, not even for a day, because --
because -- I don't know how to say it: a day is long
and I will be waiting for you, as in an empty station
when the trains are parked off somewhere else, asleep.

Don't leave me, even for an hour, because
then the little drops of anguish will all run together,
the smoke that roams looking for a home will drift
into me, choking my lost heart.

Oh, may your silhouette never dissolve on the beach;
may your eyelids never flutter into the empty distance.
Don't leave me for a second, my dearest,

because in that moment you'll have gone so far
I'll wander mazily over all the earth, asking,
Will you come back? Will you leave me here, dying?

Pablo Neruda </B>

ps after a night out on the tiles with good friends, sipping mineral water (running tomorrow), it is blessed relief to get out of four inch heels....and have a sip of vino...bliss

[Harry H Howgill]

Cheers triple H.
Have over indulged.

blah blah blah, blah blah blah, blah beer
blah blah blah, blah blah blah, blah queer
blah di di blah blah drunk
blah di di blah blah skunk
blah blah blah, blah blah Germain Greer

See - even after a night out.........

Don't worry OW, I can fill in the gaps...

Old Whippet went out for a beer,
Had too many, and felt a tad queer.
Was he skunk as a drunk?
Maybe drunk as a skunk?
He's not sure, but he'll blame Germain Greer.

[Old Whippet]

Don't worry OW, I can fill in the gaps...

Old Whippet went out for a beer,
Had too many, and felt a tad queer.
Was he skunk as a drunk?
Maybe drunk as a skunk?
He's not sure, but he'll blame Germain Greer.

Knew I could rely on you Harry.

Now....17 mins to drag my hungover carcass out to meet the Sunday runners. Urgh.