Poetry | Stories | Photography
Another time,
remembering another time.
Years move,
still within my movie memories.
Remembering
the fire of humanity burning within.
My lost youth,
a fire I thought forgotten, always burned.
A dusty chest,
finding the burning lantern within.
Holding on,
never letting go.
over half of the people live in silence
covered in cloth from the top to the bottom
hollow women unable to be human
THEY fear the sound of a woman’s voice
the silence is killing cultural traditions
No blue skies, education, and dreams
Crush under the will of the Taliban
a hot wind blows
through my clothes to burn my skin
as I think of you
resting in a place so far from the sea
so that you could
be close to the son you loved so much
reduced to ash
I think of you resting without adventure
and I wonder
if I should have given you to the sea
out there all-day
walking up and down the streets
moving too fast
working for money-hungry robots
sparrows dance about in their oblivion
crows laugh and fly off when I tell jokes
pigeons stand around taking the piss
let’s find a portal
step through it
give a little wave
by the sea
lost in dreams and the waves
a rousing fire from within forms
dry, cracked lips
you linger beyond the horizon
coffee and cake
sipping tea with laughter
caressing your career
playing with other fires
at the shore
an affinity for saltwater
and
this sorrow
Roses in bloom
once they grew to find the sun on their own
Unique colours
Gardeners competed to find order in flower beds
the theme was align
Once they grew in rows of conformity, humans won
Yet the roses don’t seek the magic of the sun so well
their colours faded
What made them unique was taken by conformity
Within the shape of my flesh,
I am a loud and angry idealist.
On the surface of who you see,
I am quiet, old, and compliant.
The walls of plaster and wood,
they hold me to the keyboard.
Defiant, yet clouded by society,
I lament the capital hypocrisy.
The fear within the rented walls,
it holds me back from the truth.
Compliant due to poverty fear,
I censure my words about
until I am in a cage made for me,
quietly moving towards obscurity.
Plastic bags
from Coles and Woolies
hidden away
in the laundry cupboard
Destined to be
tiny garbage bin liners
holding waste
in the cramped landfill
Cries from below
millions of unloved bags
lingering onwards
decomposing so slowly
our parents glorified the war
courage in sacrifice, honour in duty, and pride in country
we dreamed of the victories
old enough to fight, green as grass
training for the glory and the adventure in a foreign land
an unexpected chance comes along
the nation we serve sent us here
arid land, mountains and dirt, a misunderstood religion
days turned into months and years
a child exploded near the wall yesterday during sunset
shoot and bombing without thinking
another day, another order to master, no time to think
the message from our masters came on a dirt hot day
we are leaving this place for good
the nation we serve decided to leave after 20 years
feeling unsound, we board a flight sending us back home
emptiness fills the neglected places
too much time to think about the war we lost, the impact
sitting at home watching current affairs
the Taliban rip down pictures of women, hide them away
the country regresses into a Theocracy
thoughts of sacrifice, honour, and pride
those thoughts are thoughts left behind in another time
these thoughts threaten my existence
my parents do not know me
I am a failure in the story of their glorified war stories
they have no stories to tell
Walking through the office door
Me, out there in the swirling autumn leaves
Inside, a new mask for today
Trading nature and her beauty
for the chance to find meaning in a title
I feel the wind in my hair
Nature followed me
wind and leaves moving
Bewildered colleagues
C & K 