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On the Menu
There is quite a bit of my writing available online now. Check the menu list for Elsewhere… writing about music, football and the complete(d) ramblings of Woody & Johnny, written in collaboration with Barbara Turney With heartfelt thanks to everyone of you who reads, likes, or comments on Voyage des Mots / Journey of Words. →
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Wild Garlic
Pungent woodland trailBetween the bluebellsAnd forget-me-notsThe garlic running wildYou scrunched up two leavesOffered them to meTo roll between my palmsYou watchedMy deep inhalationOf the scented sapLeaked from the bruised vacuolesMay’s first dayWarmth, at lastA woodpecker drumming~ CLP 01/05/2024 →
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The Myth of Love Exposed by the Cerne Abbas Giant
She yearned to know possessionHer aching womb forsook discretion She led him from the crowded tavernSkipped ahead, made sure he followedA moonlit path between beech treesTo the hillside where the giant liesManhood carved from ancient chalkPermanently erect, magnificent swordHe knew his seed had met its matchHe prayed forgiveness for coming sinAccepted her embrace, warm welcome →
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On Ukraine
We must hurry, childThere’s nothing left here for usMore metal bees come ~ n.b. Villages are being left to Russian invaders, as Ukraine’s request for help is processed. There is evidence that Russia is also running thin on the machinery of war. Why else would they be using North Korean drones against the people of →
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Cardigan
Unbutton the front of historyLet in some airSee the man who led then fledHis five hundred men in the Valley of DeathArrogance gave him upSuch vanity and privilegeAs you pull on your woollen cardyTake a moment, pleaseReflect on a man whose behaviourCaused London’s Times to thunderOne law for the richAnother for the poorRemember who writes →
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A Quick Pint
I join the un-numbered men who spend Sunday afternoonIn pubs where a pint can disappear or stretch out through countless hoursUntil each decides it is time to move. Another pub beckons.~n.b. Sijo. CLP 28/04/2024 →
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Parallel Lives
We will draw a bloody line through the squalid mess of itBitter mountains, impoverished plains, rivers drained of loveForget it, walk away. As if conjoined twins ever could. ~ n.b. NaPoWriMo 2024 Day 28 prompt: Sijo, a Korean poem form. My picture is of the Korean War memorial in Washington, D.C. It is one of →
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Dissonance
Ukraine needs much more than moneyHer boys are being buriedBack in Kyiv More men have been mobilisedYounger men to replace older menSend more munitionsAmmunitionBy any meansBut who could re-stock the armsOf mothers missing sons?~n.b. NaPoWriMo 2024 Day 26 prompt: Alliteration, consonance, assonance. CLP 26/04/2024 →
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If Music is the Answer, What Is the Question?
The troubadour rode inGuitar strapped to his backPosters pasted around townWelcomed his returnAs did those who knewOf him from long beforeA never-ending tourThrough city, town and villageAcross the countryAnd around againHe was mostly happyMostly all the timePerhaps he was happiestWhen he first left homePlaying in new placesMeeting the new peopleLearning of their storiesHe found to →
Journey of Words 