Great poem, John, which I'm sure the great man would have enjoyed. However, I'm glad to say that if you google 'I Have A Dream', it's Martin Luther King that comes up first, rather than Abba, which I find strangely comforting.

Comment is about Southbank poets pay tribute at 'I Have a Dream' anniversary (article)

Original item by Greg Freeman

Brilliant X

Comment is about Eyes in the Darkness (blog)

Original item by Shirley Smothers

I love this in all its darkness, concise with hints off sporadic despair and confusion. Very honest and very very brave writing, well done for having the courage.

Ged X

Comment is about Lune Poetry (blog)

Original item by Shirley Smothers

Hi Shirley. Thank you for reading THE FOLLY OF YOUTH. Your comments are much appreciated. Ta!!

Comment is about Shirley Smothers (poet profile)

Original item by Shirley Smothers

Thank you for your comments on THE FOLLY OF YOUTH MC. Much appreciated. I was that youth. (Still am inside my head, just wiser I hope)

Comment is about M.C. Newberry (poet profile)

Original item by M.C. Newberry

Greetings - and many thanks for the Youtube link provided on my profile page.
A wondrous montage of shots of predominantly
human activity over the face of our world - but
not the downbeat message "in total" I feared.
The extraordinary achievments of Mankind in leaving its mark on our planet is there to see
but not all bad by any means. The cycle of
life goes on; even our human excretory product
can appeal to other life forms! I was amazed
only this evening to learn how reindeer are
drawn to human urine because of its salt content.
I guess we're back to human numbers - and, as with
other life forms, these must be carefully watched to guard against betraying the essential balance
of nature. Otherwise, everything increasingly
points to the sky; with our greatest modern buildings seeming to grab hold of the heavens.
As for the whale at the end of that Youtube clip
- was it saying "we're still here, pal!" - or
waving "goodbye to all that". Being an optimist I prefer the former. As one who successfully
lobbied against the use of sperm whale oil in
the leather industry back in teh 70s - resulting in the adoption of a synthetic substitute, I believe that it rescued a species "on the brink"; and I well remember many doom & gloom-mongers
readily predicting how the atom bomb would see
humanity bringing down the curtain on all life.
But au contraire...it has provided a sentinel
for global safety and a supply of power. And
there are other examples to provide optimism
for the future. By all means, let us be on
our guard against excess in whatever form - but the hope is surely in the knowledge that we
are AWARE of the dangers in line and in time
with their appearance and threat. We cannot
say we have not been warned!
Onwards and upwards....

Comment is about Noetic-fret! (poet profile)

Original item by Noetic-fret!

I listened to the "echo" version and think that
you have a delightful voice. I think you'd
make a great job of one of my favourite English
songs "Barbara Allen".
As for the melodic line, I had some difficulty
with it and wonder if the material would be
better suited to a recitation-style performance -
emphasising the vocal inflexions suitable to
your words.

Comment is about Song - Lavender man (blog)

Original item by Ann Foxglove

This my favourite so far - good description of a rooster - would have liked to have seen a couple more verses though...

Comment is about This Crested King (blog)

Original item by Starfish

Like it ... lovely structure - what does Chloris mean?

Comment is about Spring (blog)

Original item by Starfish

A great book.... good poem - I don't get the meaning of rhyme on the last line....

Comment is about Forbidden Love (blog)

Original item by Starfish

Your stuff is always worth reading. Like it.
Starfish.

Comment is about "Them As Lives Longest Learns Most" (blog)

Original item by John Coopey

For those of you inclined to post comments on this piece, thank you.

Please check this link out where you may just see the dilemma currently facing humanity.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFBMIra45lU

thank you for your feedback.

Mike

Comment is about The Thief of Creation (blog)

Original item by Noetic-fret!

Hello there,

thank you for your comment regarding 'The Thief of All Creation.'

I have posted a link for you here which i think you will enjoy. I wanted to post this on the actual poetry blog itself. As someone who mentions from looking above, i think you will enjoy this post. But, don't reach for the handkerchief until the end, when you may just 'get it.'

Aye, we always seem to come back from the brink, but i fear this time, we have moved too fast and too ignorant to restore this planet to its former glory.

Enjoy the link

Mike

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFBMIra45lU

Comment is about M.C. Newberry (poet profile)

Original item by M.C. Newberry

Rachel uses nature as a good background and it comes across so well in all her work.

Comment is about Stockport WoL (group profile)

Original item by Stockport WoL

Nice poem. Everyone has regrets. This poem states this very well. Sometimes I think I still make the same dumb mistakes.
Your poem makes one pause and consider their lives.

Good writing
Shirley

Comment is about THE FOLLY OF YOUTH (blog)

Original item by Pete Slater

This could just as easily been called
"Backwards - And Forwards". A well-considered
essay on then - and now; the presumption and
ego of youth revisited by the self-awareness
that age brings.

Comment is about THE FOLLY OF YOUTH (blog)

Original item by Pete Slater

A brief note of optimism:
However often this world seems "near the brink",
somehow something comes along - either awareness,
invention or both, to avert the disaster.
I'm always astounded, bearing in mind the many
dangers faced according to Man's own observations,
how pristine the planet looks from above - as if untouched by the latter's activities.
The biggest threat is surely human over-population
- yet how ironic that we are deluged with pleas
to "save" our species. How to resolve that conundrum?...that's the present "humanitarian"
quandary.

Comment is about The Thief of Creation (blog)

Original item by Noetic-fret!

It was Lenny Bruce who said "Communism is like
one big phone company" and clearly, in J.C.'s
lines, connections were being made!!

Comment is about "Them As Lives Longest Learns Most" (blog)

Original item by John Coopey

Thanks Peter, I am well again. Depression is bad thing to have but when the switch turns back on life is great. I have made contact with my daughter and friends again and back in a routine and writing poetry too. I don't do this when down.

I am due to read on Bishop FM soon. I am taking part in a reading of Anglo Saxon Poetry at Escomb 12th Century Saxon Church on 7th Sept as part of Lindarsfarne gospels events. I read a poem at The Puthon Gallery in Middlesbrough on Friday night. You may have heard of the poets Mandy Maxwell and Nominally known as Morbid. Anyway I have put the poem on sound cloud. Cheers....

Comment is about Pete Slater (poet profile)

Original item by Pete Slater

LOL - but you HAVE chosen to get bogged down into the politics of the poem :)

Most parents who care will move heaven and earth to give their kids the best start in life. I take your point that the grammar school system allowed bright kids in poorer areas further choice. That didn't make them the perfect solution to secondary education though. I don't suppose there will ever be one. A system needs to be flexible for it to suit all - and flexible it wasn't.

Comment is about The Eleven-Plus (blog)

Original item by Greg Freeman

A professional sound recording and good subject matter. Haunting sound and words. I have a decades old degree in Environmental Studies and am fortunate to live in a village in the countryside in Weardale. What does Noetic Fret mean...

Comment is about The Thief of Creation (blog)

Original item by Noetic-fret!

Enjoyed this one, Greg and can recognize much of what's going on it. I don't want to get too bogged down in the politics of it, other than to say that many of those who condemn grammar schools seem to have no qualms in buying there way into the best catchment areas. Having worked in a dodgy comp for decades I'm also glad that,as the son of immigrants who had no formal education after the age of 13, my (grammar) school gave me the chance of a decent education which I might not have had these days.

Comment is about The Eleven-Plus (blog)

Original item by Greg Freeman

Good poem, good ending. We all live our lives with some regrets. Mine is illness. When I am well I just trying and help people and be nice to people. One of the ways I do this is via poetry. I have read poetry on James Cook Hospital Radio, Radio Tees, Radio Teesdale, Middlesbrough Community FM and Bishop FM as a result. And I am talking about brain hemorrhage, Ulcerative Colitis, Acute Rheumatoid Arthritis and bi-polar mood disorder. The latter has certainly brought me some scrapes in life but some great experiences too....

Comment is about THE FOLLY OF YOUTH (blog)

Original item by Pete Slater

My own tribute to the great band!

http://www.writeoutloud.net/public/blogentry.php?blogentryid=36382

Comment is about Southbank poets pay tribute at 'I Have a Dream' anniversary (article)

Original item by Greg Freeman

Thanks Harry (Lavender man) - my voice is just not right for the song - it should be sung by Tom Waits really! I was trying to get across some sort of idea of addiction (for lavender read drugs/drink/sex) - failed miserably as the kind comments show :)

Comment is about Harry O`N eill (poet profile)

Original item by Harry O`N eill

Thanks guys - Harry - my voice is just not right for the song - it should be sung by Tom Waits really! I was trying to get across some sort of idea of addiction (for lavender read drugs/drink/sex) - failed miserably as these kind comments show :)

Comment is about Song - Lavender man (blog)

Original item by Ann Foxglove

Anne,
The music is superb.

The reverb version best (with perhaps the reverb lower)

Words?... I can`t help feeling that something more along the lines of a (modern) pre-Raphaelite style distracted and wandering Ophelia would suit the music more.

The dog and the chewy bone doesn`t `go` with it.

Comment is about Song - Lavender man (blog)

Original item by Ann Foxglove

This is the excellent artist from the Heatons Arts Trail I was talking about at the last meeting:

www.rachelcooke.co.uk

Comment is about Stockport WoL (group profile)

Original item by Stockport WoL

Thanks for listening Margaret! (Lavender man)

Comment is about Margaret Holbrook (poet profile)

Original item by Margaret Holbrook

Thanks Starfish! (Lavender man)

Comment is about Starfish (poet profile)

Original item by Starfish

A summery sound, just had a listen.

Comment is about Song - Lavender man (blog)

Original item by Ann Foxglove

Wizard, just magical. Amazing images with authoritative diction, and shot with stark realism in contrast. If I picked favourite spots, I would wind up quoting most of the poem.

It was wonderful seeing you on Tuesday night. My enthusiasm was genuine, if perhaps too forward. I've been hoping for a long time to meet the woman whose work I so much admire. You know the script - the mind in the flesh - that sort of thing. And it all fitted perfectly. I think reading someone's poetry sincerely is like looking through private windows, with unspoken invitation. It's really hard not to develop a sense of bonding. But I must be more circumspect in future.

Comment is about Rock pool (blog)

Original item by Marianne Daniels

Yep, right again Nigel!! I'm starting to think you should be my therapist : )

Comment is about Nigel Astell (poet profile)

Original item by Nigel Astell

Thank you for your comment Andy - much appreciated, Katy : )

Comment is about Andy N (poet profile)

Original item by Andy N

thanks for your kind comments on 'she wears pink' and 'overdose' Starfish - yes they are my songs - you can hear more of them on the audio link on my blog page - glad that you liked them :-)
Ian

Comment is about Starfish (poet profile)

Original item by Starfish

Makes a serious point in a fun way.
Starfish

Comment is about Choices (blog)

Original item by Jonnie Falafel

I think this is fantastic, is that you singing? Love "She Wears Pink" also.
Starfish

Comment is about Overdose (Of Love) (blog)

Original item by Ian Whiteley

This is really sweet. I can imagine this as a Nursery Rhyme.
Starfish

Comment is about Song - Lavender man (blog)

Original item by Ann Foxglove

hey - missed one :-(
thanks for commenting on 'golgotha' - I would love to have performed it at diggers - but Jeff tells me the open mic might be at risk now :-( - going on hols for a couple of weeks so will only be back the day before the diggers - but looking forward to it - will deffo be in attendance at your gig
Ian

Comment is about Laura Taylor (poet profile)

Original item by Laura Taylor

thanks for your kind comments on 'she wore pink' John - I honestly believe we would have had a safer and more prosperous world had JFK had the chance to shape American policy more - no Vietnam, racial harmonisation and a policy to rid the country of poverty - perhaps that's why the bastards shot him :-)
Ian

Comment is about John Coopey (poet profile)

Original item by John Coopey

thanks for commenting on 'she wore pink' Laura - I am intrigued/fascinated by the JFK years in America - if you like a good thriller (not horror) and haven't read it - try 11-22-63 by Steven King - it's set around the assassination but has a weirdly twisted sci-fi element that tells you the story of the days before and after the assasination, seen through the eyes of a time traveller - it's really good :-)
Ian

Comment is about Laura Taylor (poet profile)

Original item by Laura Taylor

thanks for your comments on 'she wore pink' MC - appreciate it
Ian

Comment is about M.C. Newberry (poet profile)

Original item by M.C. Newberry

Mike
really sorry to hear you're struggling at the moment - I have had recent touches with someone who shares some of your feelings of despair and depression - not a nice thing for the one suffering or those who can do little to help. I suppose I would say to you what I said to the person close to me - don't give up, look for the positives in things and express yourself and share your hurt. That could sound hollow if you are in a really bad place - but I hope you appreciate that it comes from a good place in me and I really do mean it.
Meanwhile - your poetry seems to be helping you express your inner demons and, whilst it is quite 'heavy' I'm sure a lot of people 'get it' and thank god they aren't similarly afflicted.
Never the less - your poetry is thought provoking, stark and intelligent - and the back track is very fitting for the subject matter.
Keep at it mate - don't let the bastards grind you down - keep creating - because creativity just might help you recover some of what you feel you've lost.
Take care of yourself sunshine
Ian

Comment is about Noetic-fret! (poet profile)

Original item by Noetic-fret!

Hope you'll try and listen to the song :)

Comment is about Song - Lavender man (blog)

Original item by Ann Foxglove

Luke Wright seems to be a vital ingredient of
today's panoply of poetry...with the excerpts
in Mr Freeman's comprehensive review giving a real flavour of his range of observational
skills.
His comment about those who feel that
something has been lost in today's U.K. is well
taken from a 31 year old. Indeed, he is wise
enough to say, from the perspective of age no doubt, that he doesn't know if it's true. From
a perspective over twice his age, I can endorse
the loss he senses. You will have had to live
through a good number of previous decades to
know. I often wonder what our octogenarian
sovereign thinks about the changes she has
witnessed - from her own admittedly elevated POV -in the country since WW2. Along with many
good things gained, we have sacrificed others
in the process...often hard to define but nonetheless to be mourned.

Comment is about Luke Wright's Essex Lion prowls the sad-eyed lowlands (article)

Original item by Greg Freeman

It was the greatest night of my life
Although I still had not found a wife
I had my friends right there beside me


We scaled the wall
We tripped thru the graveyard
Ancient shapes were all around us
No music but the wet grass felt fresh beside the fog
Two made love in a silent spot
one chased a rabbit into the dark
A girl got drunk & made the dead
And I gave empty sermons to my head
Cemetery cool & quiet
Hate to leave
your sacred lay
Dread the milky coming of the day.

poetry: Jim Morrison

Comment is about Her (blog)

Original item by Kealan Coady

Thank you Ian for commenting on ‘In Only A Contented God.’

What can I really say? I suffer a great deal of mental and physical ill health. The physical problems I can contend with. But the mental ill health is such that on most days I wish for my life to end. It’s harrowing contending with voices that only seek to drag me down from what was once a positive perspective on life. In the past they have caused me to try to cease my life. Before operations in the Gulf conflict of 90/91, I was fit, active and very positive, but nowadays I feel I have been shat on from a great height. I try to gain help when it is offered, but in the main most people do not understand. Even my own family don’t care much for what is left of me. I keep going with what has been a bad set of cards been dealt ever since I was very young. But I often think of the hardships I go through and I sincerely want revenge upon callous gods not only for what I go through, but for what many people endure here in this realm. I cannot believe the universe is some trillion years old and this status be the sum of all our being since creation. Therefor I know within myself this realm is purgatory for the majority. But this particular condition I would not want upon anyone. I am beaten up day in day out by constant voices, and I suffer the physical ailments too. But to top it all, for serving my country in faith I feel that the authorities have shat on me too, and yet, they live within this world as well as I. I am not altogether a bad person, but the way life is treating me is tearing me apart inside. I was once so full of optimism but now, I just want to sue life, and rip the almighty’s head clean off with my bare hands. It just doesn’t make any sense to suffer this way, let alone be at the mercy of environmental and economic poverty. One day, by hook or by crook, I will get revenge and there, you may say I am being delusional, but to live like this is beyond my comprehension of benevolent gods, benevolent gods that in all honesty, do not exist. It just doesn’t make any sense.

Sorry for the rant. I thank you once again and hope that your life is far better than mine. There’s just too many coincidences to say it is down to luck or karma. It bloody stinks.

Comment is about Ian Whiteley (poet profile)

Original item by Ian Whiteley

Ian,
Thanks for the encouraging comments on `Susan`

Comment is about Ian Whiteley (poet profile)

Original item by Ian Whiteley

John
Thanks for your (kind) comments on `Susan`

Comment is about John Coopey (poet profile)

Original item by John Coopey

Isobel,
Thanks for the comment on `Susan`

Comment is about Isobel (poet profile)

Original item by Isobel