The sweetest memories hang
like negatives
in the dark room of my mind
I develop them occasionally
picturing again 
more exciting times

Yellows and browns begin to wash
across the leaves outside my window
I haven’t seen you in the flesh
since those shoots were new
it feels so long ago

We ran through those streets
as if we owned them
spinning endlessly from bar to bar
from joke to ...

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The pubs are shut
The grass aint cut
The pints not flowing
The lawn needs mowing
The pies are cold
The snacks are old
The crisps are stale
The lack of ale
The jukey's quiet
The waitress fired
The buzz is gone
The fire ain't on
The food disposed
The doors are closed
Goodbye my Local

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Where Are The Rats To Race?

Keyboards lie on sanitised desks – untapped

Chairs unspun, un-sat upon

Desks un-leant upon

Carpet pile untrodden

Blinds frozen in stasis

Printers silent

Photocopiers still

Scanners lidded

Drawers unopened

Ink and gossip dried up

Chatter a mere memory

Celebrations unmarked

Frustrations unheard

No banter

No politics

No ...

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Pen devoid of poems
adventure long overdue
living room carpet
growing long in the tooth
I’m pining for movement
so keen to get out
I’ll go walking down
to Holly Hagg

Little glimpses at normality
haloed by golden rays
There’s no poison 
in the idle river
no politics
in the quiet horse
cantering to 
another chew

The clouds of working day
part while I’m out walking
bathed in nat...

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Ode to Covid Carers.

To intensive care and virus wards each day

In every town they make their way.

Caring souls, disguised in blue and white,

To fight against the Covid blight.

Shift after shift, through night and light

Brothers and sisters of mercy face up to our plight.

Masked, shielded, smocked and booted

lonely, fearful, solely commuted

on the near empty bus and...

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Covid Mary

This world is made of razorblades and bile

Where every step is dangerous to tread

Bloody footprints stretch out mile after mile

Leading to the bone mansions of the dead

They chew on rotting meat and bitter wine

And breath the fetid air of charnel house

The graveyards filled with beggars is a sign

Of every corrupt moral they espouse

In darkened rooms they ...

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Don’t wear your mask if they ask

just bask in your task —

–your task to free you and me to be and to plea:

“I can’t breathe through a mask”

“I can’t breathe through my nose”

“I can’t breathe through my mouth”

“I can’t breathe on my toes”

Breathe out breathe in

It’s no sin — you win

Inhale Exahale

Tell a failed pale tale–

–A tale of Michael who couldn’t breathe

a...

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March - June 2020 :

During the early months of the UK lockdown, in response to the Covid-19 pandemic - I've been organising and running an online community writing project through various Facebook community boards, but in two different communities: Fakenham, in north Norfolk, where I live & work, and the Isles of Scilly, which I've known and loved for over twenty-five years. The two poems produ...

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Today I bumped into an old friend,

we have not met for many a year,

such a lovely surprise to see her,

but this encounter has left me in fear.

In a flash, in a moment of madness,

forgetting the lockdown rules in place,

and without giving it a second thought,

we hugged each other, a fleeting embrace.

In a flash, in a moment of madness,

in my defence I was caught...

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Encouraged by comments on my latest blog - and reminded that I always intend to post my blogs on WOL and usually get distracted before doing so - I'm repeating a blog from a few weeks ago which I didn't post here. With thanks to those who commented on the last one!

I've been thinking about what happens next. There's been a lot of talk in the press, and shared posts on social media, about t...

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A hundred days since lockdown began, stockpiling days seems so long ago.

Rationing of pasta, toilet rolls, hand sanitiser, the empty shelves full of woe.

Non essential shops closed along with gyms, restaurants, bars and schools.

Only two persons allowed together, was just one of the new lockdown rules.

A tired nurse went to the shop and broke down, she cried in sheer desperat...

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#facebook,#friendship,#loss of friendship,#Social media, #lockdown

You don't have time and so

You're fading slowly from my life

Messages left hanging

Like smoke rings in cyberspace

But the fading is masked

By a feeling of liking and being liked

Which I tend to persist in

Because you still 'like' my stuff

As I do yours

And that seems to be a close enough equivalent

...

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Today I went shopping,

lockdown shopping is hard.

Queue up just to take a look,

changing rooms are barred.

Today I bought a new dress,

I must admit it isn't quite right.

It is just a little bit too small,

only a teeny tiny bit too tight.

Today I made a promise,

to eat healthily all next week.

I will not raid the biscuit tin,

I will turn the other cheek.

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Lockdown Birthday

We walked up from the river

Beneath a canopy of trees

The air was filled with birdsong

On a warm and gentle breeze

The sun was high in the June sky

The road stretched out ahead

We drank some wine together

shared cheese and new baked bread

After lunch we wandered home

The air was hot and hazy

Then we sat around and drunk beer

Refused t...

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Now that lockdown is finally easing, 
Into shops once more people are breezing. 
People know that they must still keep apart, 
Though in the towns long queues restart,

After such times of stress and strife, 
We strive to return to a normal life. 
But are we buying what we need? 
Or celebrating that we are freed?

Some may see all this as funny, 
As people return to spend their money. 
...

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Pupa(e)

So, there it was, just walking along,

Overly mature if truth be told.

And as it plodded lazily through its daily life

It listened to what was happening around it.

Not much clarity, but some murmurs and whispers gripped it with urgency, and it felt compelled to respond.

After some time, it became very clear –

The creature must change. It understood.

It wasn’t st...

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We were getting on great before lockdown

The odd early night and a bottle of wine

But I knew my fate was sealed when

You bought lingerie and champagne on line

What used to be fun has become a nightmare

I've seen through these hot oriental sauces

Before long I think I'll go out of my mind

Because you're stretching my resources

Stretching, stretching, stretching my ...

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There's a strange woman in the flat above

I fear that lockdown has affected her wits

She's started singing in the middle of the night

Mostly Whitney Houston's greatest hits

I put a note under her door complaining

She rang saying sorry for giving me a fright

We're both young bored and frustrated she said

She knew a better way to pass the night

It turns out she's a ...

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Folk have too much time on their hands

This mad lockdown's stoking mischief

Families living on top of each other

From bad neighbours there's no relief

They put up a new bird table next door

State of the art, four feeders on a pole

Luring all the birds from my garden

It was my finches and robins they stole

I was unable to sleep at the shock

Worried almost out of...

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New Normal

We hang around like statues

At McDonalds and Ikea

We wait in line for haircuts

Or to grab a pint of beer

We stand apart together

Following the six foot rule

We can gather for a shopping trip

But not to go to school

We spy upon our neighbours

And complain at barbeques

We daren’t go too far from the house

Because of lack of loos

We wear a m...

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Dear Kate

The challenges of the jungle, have stood you in good stead

little did you know back then, a greater battle lay ahead

As a celebrity in the jungle, your personality shone through

supported by your lovely family, justifiably, so proud of you.

The interview this morning, so touching, presented in your style

despite the pain and suffering, you still managed to raise a ...

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It Rained Today

It rained today

Breaking the strangling heat

But it wasn’t a cleansing rain

It didn’t dilute the colour of our skin

Or wash away the blood on our streets

It just soaked

The lonely man erecting barricades

So that McCars could McQueue for McBurgers

As consumerism kicked back in

And the deluge began

The air felt clearer though

Cracked...

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No ticket stress, no queueing at the gate or arena door

A concert like no other we have ever attended before

The front row of my kitchen, sat in my favourite chair

Glass of wine, singing loud, waving my arms in the air

Take that, reunited, straight from their home into mine

The Greatest Day of lock down, together they did Shine

Vintage Mark, up his ladder, in his garage full...

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A 20:20 Vision

On the one hand, it’s thumbs up for this lock down,

For hand on heart, I prefer a gentler town.

We’ve lost our human contacts, now back in touch,

A world for reaching out, with more time and much 

Space for taking and for making stock.

We knead our dough, and minds unlock,

And saws are sharpened in this time of rest,

When breath and nature seem to teach ...

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She filled her boots when

Panic buying was the vogue her

Bulk brushing rivals aside

Toilet rolls were the

Least of it

Catering packs of SPAM enough

Condensed milk for an army platoon, boxes of candles and

Assorted biscuits filled the loft her

Bathroom plastered with paracetamol cough

Linctus and mouthwash but above all

Valium for honed to a

Tee by loneliness

Mab...

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Rooted and grown from a seed planted long ago,

hidden away, buried down deep in the soil below

Under the cover darkness, black as a moonless night,

emerge tiny green shoots, enticed by the warm sunlight

Leaves gradually uncurling, flatten, gentle and slow,

veined, green, vital organs, enable the plant to grow

Stems growing up straight, sturdy, strong and tall,

b...

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Hooray, the bank holiday is here at last

Like no other we have endured in the past

No fairground rides, no trips to the zoo

No standing in line in a never ending queue

No party in the park, no festival by the sea

No soggy picnic or polystyrene cups of tea

No melted ice cream, no fish and chips

No worrying about a lifetime on those hips

No steam train journeys, no rides on t...

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I long to be in Turkey

It seems so out of reach

Just to paddle in the ocean

And stroll along the beach

I long to be in Turkey

It is my favourite place

The sun is always shining

Love to feel it on my face

I wish to be in Turkey

I feel so out of touch

Delighting all my senses

I miss the food so much

I wish to be in Turkey

How long will it be?

...

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fly

a haphazard weaving

of unclear intention

the drone of annoyance

the beating of

full spectrum wings

the tap

                tap

                                tap

                                                tap

of attempt after attempt

to get through the glass

of the window

and reach the free domain

of the out there

the buzz

       ...

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I don't know Harry,

This one's a rare bird and

No mistake,

Just how did he get in and

Where are his papers?

If he's an asylum-seeker, what is it he's

Fleeing?

As a rule that lot keep their heads down but this one's

Roaming the country

In broad daylight

As if he owned the place

Flouting the lock-down rules too and

Costing the tax-payer a fortune.

Tell me this ...

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The World in Lockdown People's Poem is now online and free to read at:

https://www.facebook.com/worldinlockdownpoem/

Please give it a read!

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You didn't argue with him

Registrars quailed and more than one

Seasoned sister had fled in tears while

He was loaded, a

Private practice financing

Mansion, country cottage, horses, boat

All the trappings

A pretty if fading wife who'd put up

With a lot.

He was in his prime.

Then that bloody virus hit and he was

King no more

Elective surgery on hold

The normal ...

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Heroes In Blue

Unprecedented times, the like never seen before

This pandemic has shaken us all to our very core

A whirlwind ripping through our cities and towns

The evil coronavirus wearing its invisible crown

It does not care if you are rich or poor

A Royal, a minister or the boy next door

No matter what age, wealth, colour or creed

Affecting us all, and with devastat...

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Help control the virus on our decent down the peak

Stay alert, the new normal, the keywords of the week

Anticipation grew around the map of our pathway out

confusing news filled us all with disappointing doubt

To mask or not to mask? now there lies a question

still debatable if they provide any medical protection

Return to work when able, keeping a two metre distan...

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What shall we do when this time has passed?
And from lockdown we'll be free at last.
We'll leave our homes and go outside
To roam all the towns or countryside.

We'll join our families and all our friends,
And this time there'll surely be no ends.
And our freedom we'll appreciate,
And each day will feel great.

We'll eat and drink in our favourite pubs,
And meet all member of our clubs,
...

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Down the corridor, comes a scream
Was it physical pain
or the horror of finally learning
the way this game is turning
They took your clothes
gave you a gown
there was nothing to do but lay right down
Now, the machine breathes
for you
hung by a thread and leaving soon

Faint flashes behind tired eyelids
recalled moments from a busy life;
the night before your wedding
barefoot kisses b...

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Wirral poets Barry Woods and Michelle Wright are curating a people's poem during the UK lockdown period. The poem is, at present, ten pages long and will be launched online on May 11th. 

Facebook@worldinlockdownpoem

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Blue thy name blue thou cosmos

Guide you’ve been, how shall I be?

Locked in solitude I miss thee

Self introspection and I see

The laughing element inside me.

Dear Goddess, Mercy!

Bless me divinity and everything fancy.

Dear Goddess, Mercy!

The Eden is full of flowers yellow and red

The trees bear fruits that God had said

Beyond the world some place unknown

I s...

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नीला नाम तेरा नीली तेरी खुदाई

रहबर तू मेरा सहे कोई कैसे जुदाई

एक कमरे में बंद न तेरे नाम की महफ़िल

मैं झाँकू खुद में ही हो रही मेरी हसाई…

खुदाया खैर! खुदाया खैर!

मुझे बता कब होगी नयी सहर!

खुदाया खैर! खुदाया खैर!

सब्ज़ बाग़ है फूल खिले पीले पीले

दरख्तों की शाख पर फल रंगीले रसीले

बंद खिड़कियों के पीछे हूँ जैसे क़ैदी कोई

ज़िन्दगी खूब है लेकिन वक़्त के नश्तर नुकीले…

खुदा...

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Strictly Bin Dancing

[People are dressing up in ball gowns and tiaras to take their bins out

An Australian woman has started a new trend online during the coronavirus lockdown, which sees people dressing up in extravagant outfits to put their rubbish out – source: Mirror 4/4/20]

She waltzes across the patio

In her Christian Dior-like dress

She’s picked up the rubbish in el...

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I start the day with little to no inspiration

Much like everyone else in the world

I also start this poem

With the repetitive voice of exasperation

The sirens are blazing late tonight

As souls are being set on fire

But because of some peoples' perseverence

Loved ones' bodies are also being set alight

Recreational parks are not essential

Travelling out of the wa...

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I accept that they may feel lonely

The constant reminder from the media that they are isolated

Alone in their puddle of thoughts

Suddenly drowning in their echoes of silence

Against all odds I am managing just fine

A stream of thoughts flowing all day

Nothing to block my mind from floating away

Not today, anyway

My thoughts are not all positive

I am unbalanced ...

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Dreading the task of a thousand spots
Lost worlds now more than just regrets or soiled paths not taken
Walking through life with coke, crack, and endless possibilities.

In the amber of panic a book of hauntology is born
The biggest April fools prank ever

Miniature portraits of a poetic diaspora under curfew still deliver haunting lines

Gaining a better view at the edge of the world
Ta...

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