Poem Of The Month: August 2010

SPACE

I open the door gently

revealing the dusty space;

the stillness of the past.

Rummaging in the half dark

I stumble over boxes of

clothes, sheets, blankets,

un-played-with toys,

a cot. The evidence of life

trapped in a loft.

I ease out of the space

careful to close the door

leaving the ghost behind.

I HAVE NOT WALKED THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA

I have not walked the Great Wall of China

and looked over its back at the vastness of Mongolia

or climbed the Statue of Liberty

and viewed from her crown the sadness of her city.

I have not scaled Ramesses at Luxor

and marvelled from his lap at the colossal structure,

nor stepped the weathered stones to the Acropolis

and looked into the minds of the ancient philosophers.

What I have done is looked into your brown eyes

and soared high into the endless skies,

listened to your words of love in my ears

and heard the wisdom of a thousand years,

felt your warm touch against my hand

and dreamt of great journeys across the land.

SOMEWHERE

Somewhere a face is falling

into a cradle of cupped hands.

A single tear is inching over

the scalded cheek of a sad face.

A voice is overcrowding

the anguished ear of a listener.

The load of the sky is pressing

down on a hunched shoulder.

Somewhere else a window has opened

to draw in generous air.

An affectionate breeze is blowing

to dry tearful eyes.

A welcome silence has calmed

a fretful mind.

A light has begun to shine.

Just enough light to see.

Copyright © John Saunders 2009

All rights reserved

The author has asserted her/his right under Section 77

of the Copyright, Design and Patents Act 1988

to be identified as the author of this work

Preview Book Here