Invited to a talk

by a humble, yet well respected man

I learn about a life of exile

(that I am living)

& although the spotlight is not on me

it shines brightly

accentuating my distorted priorities

and all the while

I am accompanied by the living dead

A life that shines so brightly and yet fades before my eyes.

A man who is so close to me 

and yet a man I cannot tou...

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They played cards 

and they talked 

whilst the little 

chess pieces 

danced

The eldest lit 

a cigarette 

whilst the youngest 

exhaled 

Its smoke

Empty whisky bottles 

shuffled nervously 

and someone 

in the corner 

sang a song 

about the sea 

and a canon ball

A man stared blindly

into the future

droning incessantly 

into the

Flea bitte...

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She sat down 
At her writer's desk
With her box of
Letters
And her pallet of 
words 
And as she painted
She tried to glue
sentences 
Together 
To make some sense
Of the world 
Which reflected 
Before her
In the paper thin mirror
Which was both
Her life and
Her life's 
Work
The jumbled paragraphs 
tumbled 
On to the canvass
Acrobats of her mind
Spilling ideas of 
What was
A...

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I know 
How you will speak
Before
You have spoken
I know how you 
Feel
Before the ice
Washes
Over your soul
I knew you
When you were
A child
I knew you 
When you
Were an animal
I knew how
You would 
Move
For the secret buttons
You think
You have hidden
The secret drum
Which resonates 
Within your soul
Is not so
Secret
We are all
Human animals
And animals
Of humans 
An...

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When you

Are three

Or four 

And maybe 

Even five 

Days are days

There is

No Tuesday  or 

Wednesday  

Or Thursday  

Or Saturday 

Or the delight 

Of a Friday 

Or the dread 

Of a Sunday 

Night 

But these 

Days

Named 

After things 

We no-longer know 

Or 

do

The space between

Them

Shortens 

The idea of them

Lengthens 

A...

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This bad kid 
good kid thing
I don't get 
The bad kids want 
to be good
The good kids want 
to be bad
What the bad kids want 
the good kids got
Except they don't understand 
except maybe for 
the want
What the good kids want 
the bad kids got
Except they don't understand 
Except maybe 
For the need
And what you folks 
don't get 
however much 
television you fill 
your reality ...

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Sometimes 

It’s the little things

Which go 

Unnoticed 

The way your 

Clothes 

Hug

Your body 

The way 

Your toes 

Point 

Framed by

Your socks 

The way that 

Bit of flesh

Flashes 

In a glow 

Brighter than

A star 

A shrug 

A smile

The delicacy of 

A finger 

Or the flick

Of a wrist 

And it’s those moments 

Which we...

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You know what 

I think 

I mean

I know you

Don’t because

You don’t ask 

And when you do 

Ask 

You 

Don’t

Fucking 

Listen 

I think 

When  I’m being

Kind

That you’re 

struggling

That your 

Family

Let you 

Down 

When you didn’t 

Even 

Know 

You needed them 

The most 

And that

Now 

When you need 

Someone to care

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We all live

Within a dream

Of ourselves 

Our inner mirror 

Reflecting 

Very differently 

To its weaker counterpart

The one 

Made of glass

Our inner wardrobe 

Very different to the one

We we wear for real

Our inner voice 

Almost unrecognisable 

To that poor 

Imposter 

We hear when 

It plays 

Back to us

On whatever 

Modern technology 

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t's too hot

To sleep

Yet we long

For these days

Of discomfort 

When all we want 

Is to wallow and bask

To sit in the sun

Let the day 

Drip slowly by

Smile at the sky

Listen to the birds

Watch the busy people

Buzzing about their 

Days

Trapped in their little boxes

Running their little 

Machines 

Sweating out

Their busy-ness

And their busin...

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Some say 

She left the tap

Running

Because she was

Hurtling

Head first 

Into a tumble of

 Life

Some say she did it

To drown out the sound

Of all her ideas

As they spilled 

From her pores

And dripped as tears

Forming puddles 

Of what might be

Others say she did it

Because 

Of the worry 

And the strain

And very pain

Of a troubl...

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What If

There was a clock

Which told

The real time

A time piece 

Governed not

By the artificial 

Tick

Or the mechanical 

Tock

But ruled

Only 

By the rhythm 

And emotions 

of 

The beating heart 

A watch

That watched

And when things 

Went slow

Their passage 

monitored

And measured

In real terms

Sensitive to 

Feelings

Not t...

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We’ll get there 

One way or another 

And we’ll learn 

Along the way 

And 

we won’t forget 

What it felt like 

We won’t do this 

To other people 

We will learn 

And we will 

Remember 

And when 

We’re 

HERE

Again 

Passing ourselves 

On the way back 

We’ll think 

A little more carefully 

Behave 

A little more responsibly

And help ...

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I feel 

Like I’m wearing 

A suit 

Sometimes 

Like my hands are 

Gloves 

Like my skin is

cloth 

And I want 

Only 

To peel it all 

Off 

Reveal 

The blood

The sinews 

The muscle 

The fat 

The bones 

Because 

That’s what 

We are 

After all 

And maybe 

All we can hope 

Is 

To not be seen

As 

A blubbering mess

On th...

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There is a place 

Where the stories 

are real

And their tellers 

Are not 

Where the dreamers

Lay awake 

And the lovers 

Wrap and unwrap 

Like beautifully crumpled 

Unwanted presents

Where people 

can fly

And animals 

can talk 

Where the flowers and trees 

Cry 

At the loss of their leaves 

And the snapping of 

Their branches 

Where th...

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Sometimes 

You don’t realise 

It is you

Who talks 

Or doesn’t talk

Never me 

And when 

That 

Silence 

Echoes between us 

It is 

Your 

Silence 

Not mine 

For I 

Never 

Spoke 

In the first 

Place 

And so 

You look at me 

With those tired 

Eyes 

And listen 

Expectantly 

For words 

Which I could never 

Speak 

For it is...

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These times 

Are hard

And tonight 

I’m tired

We have to

Make decisions 

Think 

On our feet 

Roll out the 

Carpet 

And walk on it 

With our footprints 

Mapping out

Our future 

Before we can 

See it 

Though 

Our 

Footsteps 

Echo 

Forwards 

Determining 

Which way 

We go next

The easy

Option 

Is to drink

Drink again

Dr...

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Everything in life
Has its place
Every person in life
Have their time 
Don't hold on 
When you should 
Let go
Don't let go
When you should
Hold on
Don't panic 
And fight battles
Which don't yet exist
Don't be defeated
By wars 
That others believe 
They have already won
Don't turn the fields 
Of glorious destiny
Into battle grounds 
Of failed misery
And remember always
That be...

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