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False Impression
Town’sEyes and earsClatter keysFor submissionTo Thursday’s publicationIn time for morningCigarette, coffee, teaDigestion, reflection, commentaryAmongst curtain-twitching chatteratiLast-laughers wipe away final tearsDiscussion re-opens over beersThe Have-you-heard herdAnd Oh-my-LordsWeekly fed fresh bloodIn black and whiteGobbets of gossipNow newsworthy statusBeside reports of foreign placesWhere the nasty things resideLocal man witness to eruptionVillage couple caught in coupGrandmother’s fearHoliday will be →
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Domestic Priest
You see it allSmell itTaste itWrap it all upIn a bundleGrant absolutionFor all our stainsOur skin, fluids, blood, messEvidence of sinsI confessI peer into your soulAs you spin dry mineNo handwringing required~ n.b. NaPoWriMo 2024 Day 9: Ode to an everyday object. The washing machine. CLP 09/04/2024 →
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Leopard ii
You’ll appreciate the leopardSleeps during the heatHunts by moon-lightBeautifully dressedIn those indelible spotsKnowing careless turns are madeBy those seekingThe silver scattered Along the woodland path ~ CLP 09/04/2024 →
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Proximity
It was time for lunchAlmost too lateAt the junctionHesitating for passing trafficAn alternative caught his eyeNot Fate, but the waiterBrought them together(Or possibly the coupleWho cancelled after a tiffSteeped in wearinessThat left a vacancy)You know how the French loveCafé tables too close together?It’s to encourage conversationShe opened him upWith a simple Affaires ou loisirs?He confessed →
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On The Beach
Plenty of fresh airTo blow away the cobwebsSign says, “VACANCIES” ~ n.b. NaPoWriMo 2024 Day 7 prompt :Postcard. I dug this card out of the archives. CLP 07/04/2024 →
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Wish You Were Here
It’s April. Birdsong can be heard during air-raids. Bright flowers sprout through debris. Oh that the spring sunshine would revive the cold skin of our sons and daughters. ~ n.b. Conscription age has just been lowered in Ukraine to 25 years and disability waivers are under review. CLP 07/04/2024 →
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Postcard From Kyiv
Just a quick line thanking youfor not forgetting us.We have no choice but to stay.This is our home.Until the day comes when you can visit again!In peace, with love xxx ~ CLP 07/04/2024 →
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On Ukraine
It’s not over yetCitizens of Kharkiv runMachines need not sleep ~ n.b. Six killed by Iranian manufactured drones overnight we are told. Funny, we are not told who makes the drones that kill women, children and aid workers in Gaza. CLP 06/04/2024 →
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Forget All That’s Gone Before
All players are gatheredFor the initial briefingInside some are cheering As others are grievingThe old king is deadLong live the kingWhen the old one is shotA new gaffer walks inDon’t imagine it is trueBecause of course it’s notThere’s no fresh startNo slates wiped cleanIts not a new dawn whenMonarchs still rule ~ n.b. NaPoWriMo 2024 →
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Go With Our Blessing
Accidents of birthBorn beneath the lightsNot quite the Bow BellsWe can all agreeSpecial all the sameIslanders all threeNorthward the first wentAs far as you can goBeside the German SeaAs that sea was in fact once knownHe played a lot in red and whiteFor Sunderland AFCThe second went to the EastA Viking port of oldHe became →
Journey of Words 