The Last Leaf

When the last leaf falls winter has won,
Cold fingers spread across the dark water,
This father prepares to dress his daughter,
In a pure white gown his duty done.
Simple innocence matched by none,
Courage surviving every test,
Like sleeping beauty she will safely rest,
And wait for the kiss of the spring sun.

While haunting winds howl and whine,
Silence retains its’ secret strength,
Time will go to every length,
And constantly rewrite any sign,
White clouds sail a blue sky so fine,
I hear the music pass me by,
On a lost summer’s softer sigh,
And it stole the words that sang this line.

A morning mist veils the blushing bride,
Water flows from a mountainous land,
And floods my mind with thoughts like quicksand,
A haven into which I gratefully slide,
The warmth of memory deep inside,
Kindles love to conquer lingering fear,
Welcoming waves of drum rolls sound near,
Where the sea touches the sky dreams hide.

Best wishes for health and happiness to all Scots on St Andrew’s Day.

On My Table

This is my entry for the Round Robin Challenge
Service with a smile.

Anyone for tennis? I have joined two balls,
So both of us win wherever it falls,
There is a large net that neither can see,
It doesn’t divide, but joins you to me,
Some might think this dumb it may not ring their bell,
But childlike players may hear a silent spell,
And vow to never grow seriously so old,
That their smile has died before their lives unfold.

Who will be the umpire for this fantasy game?
No record of the score would be such a shame!
Come out, come out, wherever you may be,
Hiding in pages incomprehensible to me,
I paid for your cover that is glossy and hard,
And placed you high over many a bard,
Now having seen me play everyone’s fool,
Please enrol me as jester in your school.

A Promise Kept

This is a vegetarian's entry for Happy Turkey Day. If you want to join in the fun you have until Sunday 1st December 9pm Eastern Time (whenever that is!)

The focus of camera and human eye,
Captured a moment of time in flight,
It holds a promise of eastern delight,
And I heard music on a desert’s sigh.
I look beyond the drifting sand dune,
I seek what’s omitted from the scene,
Listen to echoes of what has been,
And touch the magic in a full moon.

Like Scheherazade I narrate a tale,
To keep childlike wonder in my mind,
The next question is all there is to find,
All I know weighs nought on the cosmic scale,
The stars seem nearer in the desert air,
I reach up to the river in the sky,
Dip my fingers in the light passing by,
And I touch the graceful gown they wear.

Ships of the desert sail an arid sea,
Wind drives waves of sand in slow motion,
Time mixes an unpalatable potion,
Yet it’s simple grandeur overwhelms me,
Like a nomad wandering through thought,
I seek the oasis of an idea,
Created by reflection that’s clear,
And touch a moment in time it caught.

"I am a feather for each wind that blows"

I took the title for my entry to Martha’s A-Z Photo Challenge from ‘The Winter’s tale’ by W. Shakespeare.
The photograph is a feather representing a quill.


The photograph and song represent ‘Q’. ‘Bonded’ to each other yet stand alone.







Let my words waltz as light as a feather,
To a musical autumnal breeze,
Partnered with golden leaves falling from trees,
And rejoice in the lively weather.
My pen seductively plays on the page,
Drawing pictures by ancient rules,
My chaotic thoughts it simply schools,
Like an actress on life’s open stage.

Let my words fly as if from a quill,
That knows to guide away from turbulent air,
With that inborn instinct I would share,
And rise up from a fair green hill,
Singing songs of home to hovering clouds,
The forest gives a safe haven for me,
At nightfall my shy songs are set free
Revealing light hidden by shadow’s shrouds.

Woven Magic

Image credit ROB

Footsteps fall softly like the golden leaves,
Floated down to earth on an autumn breeze,
Sunlight streams through bare branches with ease,
Through sleeping living skeletons of trees,
Did my eyes deceive me or were you there?
Did you see me stop still stand and stare?
Are you a ghost of a shadow in my mind?
Or had you waited there for me to find?

The steps led up and climbed round bronzed banks,
Tall trees stood proudly in ordered ranks,
Did you send music not making a sound?
With calls to climb up to higher ground,
Did you show a bridge polished by the hands
Of thousands who wandered through these lands?
Curving close over a fast running stream,
That danced below, or was it a dream?

Did I stand on the bridge and hear this song
Laugh as it told me where I belong?
When I gently touched the rings of time,
Was everything simply reflected in rhyme?
In that moment did I see mountains high
Birthplace of the young stream bubbling by,
And also watch it grow regal and flow
Far beyond sight yet its’ destiny know?

I believe you showed yourself to me,
Beside the tallest graceful silver tree,
Reflecting moonlight’s soft white sheen,
The most wondrous animal ever seen,
Your breath mingled with a silent sigh,
I was reborn as it passed me by,
Of all the creatures ever been born,
None match the magic of the Unicorn.

Image credit DOUGY

Grass is Simply Green

Covering a quarter of the Earth’s land,
A simple plant paved evolution’s path,
Almost indestructible to nature’s wrath,
Grass silently grows where life will stand,
It sprouts from the base of burned stems,
And rises like a phoenix from fire,
Devoured to the roots by mass desire,
It will return to hold raindrops like gems.

Beyond the limits of the last tree,
Frozen by bitter arctic night,
It waits for the return of the light,
Under a white blanket by a stilled sea,
When winter releases its’ icy grip,
The tundra responds to the spring’s release,
And green welcomes flocks of snow-white geese,
Completing an amazing marathon trip.

With unlimited water and sun,
Elephants hide within the tall blades,
Through them Earth’s largest herbivore wades,
And her smallest wild pig loves to run,
Great flocks of birds that take hours to pass,
Feed on an incalculable number of seeds,
That holds the energy natural flight needs,
Hear this song when you mow your lawn’s grass.

Somewhere in Time

Somewhere in time a nightingale sings,
Of life’s journey and the sadness it brings,
With wings so strong hope surely flies,
Through threatening clouds into clear skies,
The music plays softly on waves of thought,
Moving emotion is easily caught,
Held by a moment like a foaming crest,
Then gently brought down to earth and rest.

I see my second childhood beckoning,
To be counted in the final reckoning,
Waving a wand of youth so high,
The magic carries me beyond the sky,
A timeless horizon stretches through space,
Words weave a web like intricate lace,
Here is the home I’ll hold close to my heart,
And a journey’s end becomes a new start.

I will hear music wherever I go,
The rhythm of life beats time fast and slow,
The shadow dances of dark and light,
My words will echo with black on white,
Imagination brings colour to the scene,
I would have smiles mark where I have been,
Asked what would be my favourite hue,
I answer warm yellow on a pale true blue.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I followed Guido’s recommendation and went to Regina’s journal.
I would also like to recommend it to anyone who likes poetry.

Hot Beverages ~ Soup Glorious Soup!

This is my entry for the photograph of a Hot Beverage this week on
Ellipsis Monday Photo Shoot.

Less like a drink and more like a meal,
Hot pot soup my taste buds will steal,
Made in minutes to savour in sips,
Take care! It will burn impatient lips,
Made at home, the ingredients known,
At Flubber Buster the recipe’s shown,
Where Deb and I are trying our best,
And follow a slimmer life style quest.

I couldn’t leave out the garlic bread,
So swapped some spinach for parsley instead,
Now no one will ever be able to tell,
What I’ve eaten by the powerful smell,
My breath won’t betray my secret friend,
That fights cold and ‘flu and helps to send,
Unwanted infections right round the bend,
But words reveal all when your ears you lend.

Swanning~a~Rose

Image created using Photoshop

Will you be my love, faithful and true?
For I will truly always love you,
Will you sail with me through all our days?
For I would learn your wiser ways,
Will you watch with me every morn?
As the sun heralds the new happy dawn,
Will you fly and sing alongside me?
And beat the rhythm of hearts that are free.


I am probably too late to enter the Round Robin Photo Challenge with this entry but decided to post it anyway because I enjoyed working out finally how to make the picture from two photographs.

The Camera does not Lie

Image credit Nasa. The young star Fomalhaut and planet. For a full explanation please go to
Astronomy Picture of the Day

Who is now looking at whom?
Through this camera’s eye I see,
The past looking straight at me,
The future forever seeking room,
Both brought on waves of light,
Silently captured for today,
Singing songs of yesterday
So tomorrow’s dawn breaks from night.

Change is time’s sharpened arrowhead,
The shaft holds history’s might,
Hope, lighter than feathers, aids flight
Beyond the tried and failed, instead
Guides thought toward the unknown,
To break the barriers of pride,
Open doors of ignorance wide,
To what creation has always shown.

A young star is masked so we might hear,
An ancient story slowly unfold,
Around a sleeping giant it is told,
With music of the night ever near,
Let this vision open my eyes,
As in the mirror I may learn,
The fires of truth with knowledge burn,
And wisdom within their warmth lies.

Ring-a-Ring O'Roses

Image credit A. Ginsberg Two Black Holes Dancing

Zero, without it all numbers must fail,
Yet it is so often regarded as nought,
When it is a foundation for modern math,
And puts us on the basic path,
But I’ve not got further along that road,
I got stuck with nothing for my load,
I’ve carried it far yet I’ve gone nowhere,
It is very heavy for something so bare,
It is endless yet it brings me up short,
I’m minus worthless in the winter sale.
It rolls completely closed to any change,
And points the way through infinities’ door,
We shall never find anything more,
Than whatever is held by a circle so strange.

Silence

Stand tall, touch the sky then reach beyond,
Discover the stardust where it now lies,
Shine then show the way of the wise,
And you will have found your magic wand.
Hold it high in the dark of the night,
When ignorance rules with sightless eyes,
With arrogance deaf to warning cries
And proudly wears a mask of might.

Like moonlight magic silently sings,
With love from the star that gave it birth,
Bound by time and space to earth,
It flies to the heavens on silver wings,
I hear waves of music dance on air,
Thought fights to find the words to write
A description of every colour in white,
And win the mantle one moment can wear.


Life is the only thing we own,
All days spent learning in the light
Increases wisdom to share in night,
I wondered if my shadow had grown,
I now know that I dance alone,
No one hears the song that I sing,
I am not able to ever bring,
Warmth with a heart made of stone.

Fit for Nothing Except to Bust

I like to write nonsense in rhyme,
Sometimes I do it all the time,
Because I then read what I write,
As folly goes that’s quite a height,
I’ve nothing important to say,
I am no use in any way,
This verse reflects what I am now,
As much waste, as space will allow.

I used to be useful it’s true,
I used to help people like you,
Now I can barely help myself,
And not fall from this dusty shelf,
The one thing that I have still got
Laughter saves me from quite a lot,
If I didn’t laugh I would cry,
For a wasted life and then die…

Dye death any colour but blue,
That pale misty favourite hue,
Hew down weeds that would choke others,
Greed beauty and goodness smothers,
Lies poison everything in sight,
Site the liars in the spotlight,
Spot the difference find the ball,
Fined, the selfish wouldn’t win all.

This song wrote itself in the dark,
Rather like a quantum strange quark,
Now you don’t see it then you do,
And there may be more in the queue,
Cue Father Christmas on his slay,
Reindeer flying such a long way,
Sleigh the bitter thought you it kills,
Dance in the rain dear; forget ills.

Nonsense rules, no sense is OK,
Good thing with me it has to stay,
I laugh at the devil in me,
To shrink it in size so I see,
Clearly over it and around,
Whilst keeping my feet on the ground,
On the deck of this ship that flies,
Through space spinning to each sunrise.

Website

I have started a website at Home ~ The Journey. It will contain photographs, pictures and songs that are associated with my personal journey whereas Visual Counterpoint will continue to have songs that do not necessarily reflect my own experiences. Home ~ the Journey blog will continue to have mostly written accounts of my journey.
The website is in its’ infancy and I am finding it rather hard to sort out how to do things. My goal is to get the basic presentation looking as good as I can.
I would welcome any comments and constructive criticism from friends. As yet I do not know how to allow comments on the website so you can leave them here or e-mail me.

Pure Imagination

Image credit ROB

She rode a white horse dressed all in black,
She rode down the road but she will be back,
To stand in her place by God’s grace,
And see those who hurt her their evils face,
Begging and pleading to be forgiven,
But her heart forever has been driven,
From caring for such traitors and liars,
She’ll walk away leaving them in the briars.

With the wild flowers and birds she will roam,
She will carry the young lamb home,
Under the trees she’ll lie softly and rest,
Over wide waters ride on a wave crest,
Walk with silence like a velvet glove,
Washing her with warm rain from above,
She will ride on through the dark night,
Her horse shining in the pale moonlight.

Her voice will be heard with the nightingale,
She will sing songs that tell many a tale,
They will echo through the highest mountains,
Falling with the waters and rising in fountains,
They will take wing and rise high in the sky,
Over meadows’ simple daisies they will fly,
Through fields of golden corn under the sun,
Waving to a poppy when each verse is done.

You will no longer see her but if you look deep,
Into the woods you may think that you sleep,
When you see a white shadow softly pass by,
And hear echo through silver trees a sweet sigh,
Or look out to sea one warm misty day,
And see a childhood ghost from fairy tales at play,
No horse with such beauty has ever been born,
Was that a horn? Have you seen a unicorn?

Image credit ROB