Ephemeral

Intangible, ghost

Whispering through the silence

Like cars in the distance

Sounds of souls
Escaping tired, limp bodies

A fleeting humming wind

You were only a ghost

Who lives in my memories

Nationality Fraud

I'm not quite Irish-bred

Nor English nor Scottish

Hair not the colour of fireish-red

Or skin the shade of new lambswool

The ones that fill our round green hills

But hair like the winter sky, dark and cool

And eyes not blue

But brown, near black

Not a picture of an irish true

Don't speak the tongue of the Ulster Scots
Or the lilting tunes of gaelic
But I have no plots

To change this place
Our identity in knowing

We're our own wee race

Don't recite the Creed or the Hail Mary,

Soldier Song or God Save the Queen

Or attend church in a building old and eerie

I'm not quite Irish-bred

Nor English nor Scottish

And I'm filled with dread

When I hear that question

What is your nationality?

Ballycastle

Yon stands Rathlin amid the sea

Oot the winda of our wee hoose

And the bastes of the sky hover

As the fushermon let their nets oot loose

We're all roon the fire

When the nicht turns caul'

Yer tay in yer haun

Tellin' stories of 'aul

When the morn awakes

Breathin' in salt air

Yer oot fer a dander

Across the strand, so fair

Playin games in pairs

Fer twa heids is better than yin

And discoverin' the history

Of this hoose and its kin

How many times hae ye stayed

Yin, twa, or thie?

In this aul' hoose

Our memories will always be

Noël

Le jour de Noël
La naissance de notre Roi
La neige si belle
Tombe sur les bois

Pourquoi les cadeaux?
Pourquoi nous mangeons?
Pourquoi le vin chaud?
Pourquoi les bons-bons?

Dans ce monde plein de guerre
Nous pouvons te voir face à face
Nous ne sommes pas seuls sur la terre
A Dieu nous rendons grâce

An Irish Garden

Frowning flowers
Anchored alone
Allotted
Drenching downpours
Diminishing their demeanour

Quivering leaves
Petals crying raindrops
Dark clouds
Changing their complexions

Sunflowers solemnly
Await the day
When he appears
Peeping coyly through the clouds

We all wait for him
....the sun

Clair de Lune

Le clair de lune est si brilliant
Que je ne peux pas dormir
Je te veux à mes côtés
Rester avec moi dans mes rêves
Où la réflexion de la lune flotte
Dans l'océan si noir et pur

Le passé me haunte
Je ne veux pas faire les mêmes erreurs
J'ai peur d'aimer,
De laisser quelqu'un entre ma vie
De savoir tous mes secréts
Tous mes rêves
Toutes mes fautes
Et tous les chemins de mon corps

Mon âme et mon esprit sont déchirés
Entre mes désirs
Un jour j'espère quand
Je te connais plus
Je sentirai l'amour naturellement

Haiku - Jemma

Spellbound, free spirit
Long dark shiny hair, seaweed
Your moisture still felt

A Bloody Mess

Red blood pours
White flowers laid
Blue lights flash

A determined flag of
Red, white & blue
Never knew
This mess would ensue

Patchwork

I see a patchwork quilt

By fences sewn together

The greens, browns and silt

And pretty dots of heather

This view from the window

A reminder I can roam

But relax and surely know

I've always got a home

And just a little farther

A perfect blue sea sprawls

A tiny blue smudge, rather

Reminds me adventure calls

This view from the window

Makes me rest, dream, gaze

But tomorrow I must go

And see what's past that haze

Impenetrable

A bulletproof film

Nebulous dome

Obscures the view

Separating here from

The realm where you are

Life Never Loiters

Our future laid before us

Like the city's sullen skyline

Mystic words

I can't quite remember

Hide above the clouds

Somewhere far

Unreachable

Muttering winds

And shallow souls

Fly too fast

To catch and hold

Life won't wait
It never loiters

Giant's Causeway

A barricade
Of giant stepping stones

Thrown out to sea

A foaming mouth

Which curls and rips

With vengeance

An enemy line

Waving at invaders
Across the Irish Sea

Morning

I haven't drawn the curtain yet
But pessimism I shun
Even though the sun and sky haven't met
I know the battle is won

Soon that yellow yoke will rise
And bring new life
As it's cracked into the skies
And boils away our strife

I haven't even put on my gowns
But today I will smile
Even if I face a sea of frowns
For He takes me to this tranquil isle

A Belfast Fan

You're off on a trip across the world
So the ozzie flag we have unfurled
Its not used to our weather
And quick Irish blether
But I'll ramble a tale
Over a pint of ale
Of our dear city béal feirste
Who will never forget ye!

A trip up the coast
Is what I love most
By the crystal blue sea
With a flask full o' tea
Granny goes in for a skinny dip
Then we're off home via the golden chip

We enjoy Irish wheaten, it just can't be beaten
Triangular sandwiches and traybakes
And don't forget our lakes
There's spelga dam
And the river bann
Lough neagh
And murlough bay

There's so much beauty
But the men watch the footy
Arguing over linfield and glentoran
The Lambeg or the Bodhran
Or what sports you play
Or what prayers you say
For arguments sake
We'll just shut our bake!

For we're all invaders of this green land
Once so barren and so bland
Now blooming with history
Culture, tales and mystery

I'll take a dander down by the dock
And tomorrow a stroll around Castlerock
There's so much to see, across from Magee
Or a sunny day trip to Donegal
And down where St Patrick preached at Saul

A catch up with friends at Maggie may's
It's decor not changed over quite few days
Their speciality - the ulster fry
Or a salty broth to make your mouth dry

A sunday night in with father ted
Laughter and craic and soda bread
Dad's light dinner of bacon and toast
After mum had cooked the Sunday roast
Remember his gammon
We were left in a famine
We named it disaster
Caravan cooking, he never did master!

Taties with scallions

That's champ to us hallions

Bacon in a bap

From yer man down the road, the bakery chap

The colours of Belfast

The flag on its mast

Red white & blue, green white & gold

And so our persuasions are therefore told

We could choose neither, a plain flag of white

To symbolise peace, to stop this oul' fight

We'll see you again
Who knows, with a we'an?
And a healthy brown tan
But you'll always be a Belfast fan

Il suffit

Son ombre

Me cache

Dans ma chambre
Dans mon lit

Pas loi

Toute foi

Il suffit

Encased

Parachuted into Wirral
Strange, new place
I lean on the window sill
Of this room where I am encased
Trapped, cabin fever
There's so much out there to see
But I lift the receiver
To call home, they will comfort me

Frozen in time

The clock hand clutched the number 12
It didn't let go
Time stood still
As did I

These blue flames under my brow
Are quenched by heavy tired lids
But anger and rage consume me
And I can't find the trigger
Which controls this mood

My hunger for food is faded
I hunt for memories of who I was
Digesting and assimilating
My new surroundings, my new home
But I don't even feel at home
In this mind, or in this body

I know your face from somewhere
It's like looking in a mirror
You call me "mum"
And stroke my hand
But I need you to be my mum

Then you leave and blow a kiss
It drifts across the room
With the heavy scent of disinfectant
My soft, bland dinner arrives
And thick beige tea
Which will remain untouched and solitary
Like I am now

And I look for that trigger again

Werewolf

The curtain of darkness ruffled as it fell
Leaving a glimpse of perfect pearly circle
The night air hugged you like a black cloak
You felt no cold; your blood flowed fast
Your eyes burned from brown to red hot
Anger and rage scorched everything

Your muscles rippled and shook
You look down at your feet
Which will soon tread much heavier
You stroke your smooth skin
And take your last human breath
As pearly daggers grow in your gums

Bursting at the seams
A fabric pile left by your paws
The last of human normality
Your jaws crave a bloody fight
And just then, you wonder
If you'll ever wear these rags again

One of many Limericks I wrote as a child

There once was a girl called Estelle
Who picked a pretty bluebell
She found to her disgrace
It exploded in her face
And now she's not a bit well

Night on the tiles

I'm determined to write
Something trivial
Something light
I've written enough
About the Emerald Isle
Or unrequited love
So now I'll write
About a night on the tiles

Trains and taxis

Full o' girls with fake tans

Tripping over their maxis

And guys with beer cans

Like Carling, not Cains

Kids try to look cool

Roaming around Liverpool
Downing daiquiris
And probably E's
At Mathew Street's bars
With suffocating heat
Shoes mopping the floor
Hours of beats and bass
And tequila tastes
We head for the door
To Heebie jeebies
ID at the ready
Avoiding the 'sleazies'
Then Alma de Cuba
Dancing the hula
Alpha males
By the alter rail
Belly dancers and shakers
Hungry eyes and glances
Looking for takers
Looking for kisses
Or just someone hot
Until he got caught
By his misses
Next time I'll just snooze
with whiskey and lime
Soakin up the blues
And takin it slow
...At Mello Mello

Each bite

Each bite
Quietly controlling
This internal fight

A war you can never win
Divided by own thoughts
And self-convicting of sin

Fearful of fat on your hips
Your identity is placed
In what passes your lips

Carbs, fat and protein
Mentally categorised
Consequences unforeseen

Scouring labels for calories
Each day less and less
Pushing the boundaries

A feeling of achievement
Drowning, you're dragged
By a caressing current

No longer alone you'll fight
In Jesus, identity is found
His yoke is easy and burden light

To you he will bind
Feeding new strength
And a renewing of mind

Rows

Rows of soft white beds
To each life owes
A healing promise
To those we'll miss
Laid in bedclothes
Doctors are not foes
But may not succeed
With the kiss of life
We compose ourselves
Reciting creeds
And words we'll tell
Our heroes
If they awake
From their doze
But now only heartache
And old happy photos
Rows of beds, soft and white
Which we don't want to see
We've said goodnight
And now we try to make
Each day
As good as can be

The last time I walked barefoot...

The last time I walked barefoot
My feet sunk happily into the sand
My head was infused with the scent
Of the market spices and wandering incense
I floated on the salty water
My skin saturated with a red sun blush
Splashing sounds
Joyful jeers
Drifted across the gentle breeze
Freedom
Until I get home through the locked door
And walk barefoot on my sandy beige carpet

I am from...

I am from a land of barricaded hearts and homes

I am from a city which has cried a river

I am from a land where the mountains stand tall in the mist

While the people hang their heads under their peaks

I am from a land where self-righteous spires pierce society

I am from a land of green fields brimming with goodness

I am from a land where friendly has a new meaning

Where even the painted city walls say Welcome

I am from Belfast...

Tears

I will not give you my tears
They are mine
They only fall like rain on the broken roads of my mind
'Our' journey there is lonely and winding

This road is slippery and all the signs say the same thing
....danger
My mind won't be moved by your metamorphosing moods
I will not run on empty while I piece together your car crash logic
I will turn these wheels around and head for the next destination

Dieu de beauté

Dieu de beauté

La joie me fait sauter

Tu nous fais comme des lumières

Comme un ballon dans l'atmosphère

Visible aux yeux de tous

Une sourire, les problèmes dessous

C'est ça que Jésus peut faire

C'est ça que j'ai choisi

C'est ça que je préfère

Depuis je suis née

Tu contrôle ma destinée

Ma vie - tu as illuminée

Tick tock

Time passes

Days fade
Chores in masses
Through, I wade

Time passes
Dreams, deluded
Young lass's
Hopes muted

Time passes
Earth destroyed
Rosy glasses
Must avoid

Time passes
Onward, upward
Greener grasses
Soaring bird

Comfort you ignite

Golden malty liquid

The delight you create

As I unscrew the lid
Your aroma permeates

Sinking into dark vaults

Murky, earthy

Triple distilled and single malts

And bourbons not so worthy

A brimful of Bushmills
Or the floating famous grouse

Over the glass it spills

As I relax in the house

Peaty bogs

Crackling logs

Smokey, orange, light

This comfort you ignite

Haiku - Fearful Friesian

Black and white attire
Convict of the abattoir
Alone on death row

Haiku - Home

Home equals haven
Cosy feet propped up, resting
Hot Whiskey in hand

Haiku - Hungry

This famine tastes bittersweet
You left me hungry
For the next time we will meet

Bras de glace

Tu es comme le soleil de minuit
Tu me tiens dans tes bras de glace

Tu es l'hiver merveilleux
Je suis tirée vers toi
Comme l'effet de la lune sur les ondes

Mais quand le jour se lève...
Tu as disparu

La Lune Si Belle

Quand la lune si belle

Apparaît  dans le ciel

C'est ma chance

pour silence

Le monde dort

il fait sombre dehors

La terre a perdue sa chaleur

Mais je reste dans ta présence

J'écoute à tes mots

Tu me fais forte

La majesté de mon Dieu

Reigne toujours

La paix en tes yeux

Elle calme mon coeur

Mon Dieu si beau

sans sang et sans peau

Je ne peux pas te voir

Avec foi je peux croire

Sans toi mon Dieu

Je suis perdue

Belfast as a young woman

Your parents' minds were dark and their ways controlling
Like Black Mountain towering over Belfast
But your eyes are bright, bonfires alight

Your new roads, the blemishless arms and legs
Have no tattoo murals or scars
Like your parents' blackened, burnt pavements
You don't understand why they can't heal

Your sweet perfume fills the wind and envelopes the hills
No more the odours of your past,
The factories, the breweries
The blood or the gunpowder

At the foot of the River Lagan
Your new pair of sparkley shoes you show off
The odyssey and waterfront hall
Your new found nightlife

You party all night
Your heart free and open
No security checks now
You let anyone in

The waves of your dark hair bob up and down
As you dance and ebb
And watch the men who pass by

But each day or night without fail
Your tears fall down
And wash this city with rain

Your dreams and deep thoughts are locked away in your heart
Like jewels in the city's mansions
Your body and mind are divided like your people

You still feel empty inside
Knowing you've got a long way to go
Before you feel peace