Author: ivor20

G'day, and welcome to my blog site. My name is Ivor Steven, I live in Geelong, Australia. I'm an ex-industrial chemist, and a retired plumber, and a former Carer of my wife(Carole), for 30 years, who suffered from severe MS. I Write poetry about those personal thoughts, throughout and beyond my life as a Carer. I've been blogging for over 2 years, and writing poems for 19 years. Of course a lot of my poems are about my favourite subject Carole, but since I've been blogging my writings have become quite varied, humourous, mystical, observational, and even a few monster/horror poems.

Throwback Friday, Mystic Man, by Ivor Steven

Here’s my Throwback Friday poem on ‘Go Dog Go Cafe’… come and visit this fabulous site ‘anytime’….. a writers site, for writers to meet other writers

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Sixteen months ago, I was in hospital, and the specialists were not sure what was wrong with me, so I was place in a ‘Isolation/quarantine’ room for 2 weeks, and I have been reminded of that incarceration, by the present ‘Coronavirus outbreak, and I am reflecting on my time in that situation, and of being separated from the outside world….. During this isolation, I wrote a number of poems, and “Mystic Man” is one of those writings….. a mysterious poem, and obviously, in my mind I was desperately planning my ‘escape’……my imagination was running a fever…..

Mystic Man

I’m digging a tunnel

With my ball and chain

Underneath the great wall

Towards the east side of the moon

Away from these wasted days

Beyond the drain of pain

My eyes search for a light

Through my grotto’s ceiling crack

Resolutely my heart yells at me

“There’s no turning back”

Fingers…

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The River Knows – Poem by Ali Grimshaw

This poem by Ali Grimshaw is my first read for the day…..and what an awe-inspiring read….. your lazy bones will rattle, and you’re sleepy senses will be awakened…..so go and follow your day…

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“I only went out for a walk, and finally concluded to stay out till sundown, for going out, I found, was really going in.”
– John Muir

In slowing my pace to lightly step
I saw the power of the hummingbird
defeating the odds again
to fly, even though science says it shouldn’t be able.

I leaned on the elder tree that stood through hurricanes.
Touched sprouts forcing through cracked concrete.
Studied a cactus with magenta bloom
in the desperate dry landscape.

Outside I found my mentors.

Along singing creek waters, trails of bright birdsong
and pausing in cliffside meadows where the ocean roars.

I heard the strength of the outside.

The river knows where it is going
and I will follow it.

© Alicia Grimshaw 2020

photo by antilandscpaper 2-26-20

Hummingbirds have been baffling scientists for years. Matt Ransford commented, “The hummingbird is an animal that by all rights shouldn’t be able to…

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Living On a Wooden Bridge

 

Today’s poem is a rewrite of a piece original called “Living On a Knife Edge”. This poem was one of two, that I submitted to be published, but the other poem was accepted ahead of this piece, and so readers I’m posting this rewritten poem for you to peruse today…..

 

Living On a Wooden Bridge

 

Fire, fire, there’s raging fires

I need help to stamp out the flames

Burning down this old timber bridge

A traveler’s last causeway to the edge

Carrying today’s harsh realities

Spanning a lifetime dreams and fantasies

 

Rain, rain, there’s a Noah’s flood

I need help to stop the cascading suds

Fill the sandbags with riverbed mud

Smother the leakages with woolly rugs

Ring out the qualms and doubts

And refuse doctor’s drugs and handouts

 

Warning, warning, outside there’s a heatwave

I need help to see through the dusty haze

Douse the fiery furnace tonight

Close the doors, the fireflies are alight

Open your eyes, and view the glowing sights

And cross the bridge into life’s future delights

 

 

Ivor Steven (c)  March 2020

PDF Release of True Love, Spring 2020 Issue 16

Red Wolf Journal’s Spring Issue 2020, is now out, (including my poem Strings) and there’s a PDF link available for you to download, and the anthology “True Love” is a truly a wonderful read….

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true love issue 16

We are pleased to announce the release of the Spring 2020 Issue.

The poets with work in the True Love edition are:

Paula Bonnell
Jeff Burt
William Conelly
Joe Cottonwood
Judy DeCroce & Antoni Ooto
Ivo Drury
Edilson Ferreira
John Grey
Randel McCraw Helms
Christopher Hileman
J.I. Kleinberg
Kathleen Latham
Ron. Lavalette
Michael J Leach
Marie C Lecrivain
LindaAnn LoSchiavo
Karla Linn Merrifield
Barbara A Meier
Misky
Joseph Murphy
Nils Peterson
Diana Raab
Ivor Steven
Debi Swim
Mark Tulin
Alan Toltzis
Alan Walowitz

You may download a copy of the PDF release here.

True Love Spring 2020 Issue 16

You’re invited to submit to our new issue, titled Journeying. Read submission guidelines here. You may also find us over at the other site at Red Wolf Editions. Happy writing!

Irene Toh
Editor
Spring 2020

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Promote Yourself Monday, March 2, 2020

Dear readers and followers, here’s a great opportunity for your writings to be read by other writers, and also to find and meet other writers. You are very welcome to participate, come along and visit our writer friendly site…..

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Promote yourself Mon

Welcome to Promote Yourself Monday.  All Go Dog Go Cafe community members are invited to post one link to one specific piece of their writing (600 words or less please!) they have published on their blog, Facebook page, or Instagram feed into the comments section below.

If you post a link, be sure to read some of the other great writing people have linked to.

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The Communities Leap Of Faith. “Pako Festa”, Geelong

Over on Weekly Prompts, this weekend’s challenge is:  Leap. Please go and visit their fabulous site by clicking >>HERE

Yesterday (Saturday), I went to Geelong’s annual Pako Festa event, a gathering, celebrating the colourful multicultural societies that live in harmony within Geelong’s community. These people who have come from all around the world, have taken a giant leap of faith to resettle their lives here in Geelong. There were over 25 different nationalities represent in the glorious parade, and I’ll let my photos below do all the talking today….. I hope there’s not too many photos, but as you can imagine the parade took well over an hour to go pass me !!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ivor Steven (c)  March 2020

 

 

 

 

 

Leftover Dew

This a very old poem that I posted on ‘Go Dog Go Cafe’ yesterday’s ‘Throwback Friday’, and I’m posting again here on my site for you to read…

 

Leftover Dew

 

I know I’m far from perfect.

I make awful mistakes.

I know I’m overly loud.

I dominate and crowd.

 

I do have a big heart.

A soul so soft.

I do love to hold and to kiss.

To cuddle and caress.

 

I feel your reluctance.

Your barrier fence.

I feel like a fog over you.

Like the morning dew.

 

Will you ever need another?

Or love another.

Will you ever let me remain.?

Or look for me again.

 

 

“The Hosting Of The Shee”, Lyrics by The Waterboys

The host is riding from Knocknarea
And over the grave of Clooth-na-Bare
Caoilte tossing his burning hair
And Niamh calling: ‘Away, come away’
‘Away, come away, away, away’.The winds awaken, the leaves whirl round
Our cheeks are pale, our hair is unbound
Our breasts are heaving, our eyes are agleam
Empty your heart of its mortal dream.

The host is riding from Knocknarea
And over the grave of Clooth-na-Bare
Caoilte tossing his burning hair
And Niamh calling: ‘Away, come away’
‘Away, come away, away, away’.

Our armsa-wave, our lips are apart
And if anything gaze on our rushing band
We come between him and the hope of his heart
We come between him and the deed of his hand.

The host is riding from Knocknarea
And over the grave of Clooth-na-Bare
Caoilte tossing his burning hair
And Niamh calling: ‘Away, come away’
‘Away, come away, away, away, away, away…’.

Ivor Steven (c)  Sept 2016

There’s a Heartbeat, Within Every Dream

The persistent rain, drizzling all week

The misty drops playing a gentle tune on our roof

Reminding our souls, how we exist softly meek

Remembering souls we’ve lost, we the leftover proof

 

The hovering clouds, hide thoughts of yesterday

The lifting fog, delivers today’s golden sunbeams

Reminding our hearts, why we love, why we stay

Remembering our every heartbeat, within every dream

 

 

Ivor Steven (c)  Feb 2020

Not So Wise, But My Size

The midweek challenge on Weekly Prompts is T-Shirt Wisdom. An interesting subject/prompt for me, as I am a bit of a T-shirt buyer when I’m on my trips away, and  the below photos are from my collection of T-shirts……. And please go and visit the fabulous “Weekly Prompts” site by clicking >>HERE

Below: My China trip T-Shirts…

Below: My cruise to the New Caledonia Islands

Below: My cruise to New Zealand

Below: The trip to New York and Philadelphia, “Dreams of the Heart”

Below: Gifts from my sister-in-law when visiting Thailand

Below: My ‘Doctor Who’ T-Shirt….           &    a gift from my Canadian uncle

Below: Leonard Cohen T-Shirts (Of course)

Below: “Hanne Kah”, from Germany, who I meet at a music venue in Geelong…. A Geelong Music Festival T-Shirt, from 5 years ago, and the T-Shirt my sister bought for me, when I got home hospital, in time for Christmas 2018….

 

 

 

Ivor Steven (c)  Feb 2020