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.

Five Birds (a Tanka)






Five Birds (a Tanka)

Birds on a light post
Witnessing the world below
Five jurors on hold
The verdict is forever
Blowing in the winds of time











All Books. Now Available At:

Creative Geelong MAY’D Shop,
Shop 15/Centrepoint Arcade
132 Little Malop St, Geelong
TRADING HOURS
Thursday-Saturday
11am-3pm


Until Eyes Hear Sound

Lulu Books >>  Until Eyes Hear Sound (lulu.com)


Perceptions:

Amazon >>  Perceptions : Steven, Ivor, Knight, Derrick: Amazon.com.au: Books
Lulu Books >>  Perceptions (lulu.com)


Tullawalla:

Amazon >> Tullawalla A Meeting Place Where My Empty Hands are Full of Memories and Rhymes : Steven, Ivor: Amazon.com.au: Books


OR: >> You may email me directly for a signed copy at
ivorrs20@gmail.com





Ivor Steven (c) July 2024

Our ‘Scouting Out’ Expedition






Our ‘Scouting Out’ Expedition

We went to the Valhalla Brewhall
In the iconic Federal Mills location in North Geelong
The venue of our next ‘Open Mic’ event
For “lowercase poetry, Geelong”

Frankie and I “soaked” up the atmosphere, and agreed
The establishment would be very suitable
For the poetry community’s ‘open mic night’
There’s plenty of comfy seating
So, come along fellow readers
And enjoy the warm and friendly service
At Valhalla, next Thursday 11th July, 6.30 pm onwards.

>> https://fortemag.com.au/valhalla-brewhall-geelongs-newest-craft-brewery-in-north-geelong-is-a-game-changer/

 






Ivor Steven (c) July 2024

Resting?






Resting?



Why rest?
Dawn is here again
Another new day
For my persistent pen

Why Rest?
From every moment
A second emerges**
Time has no opponent

Why rest?
The Age of Aquarius
Has been and gone
And the edge of beyond
Is no longer precarious



** From every moment
a second emerges** … Borrowed from Robert Okaji’s poem, “Flame” out of his Chapbook, “From Every Moment A Second”
>> https://robertokaji.com/2017/11/21/flame/










All Books. Now Available At:

Creative Geelong MAY’D Shop,
Shop 15/Centrepoint Arcade
132 Little Malop St, Geelong
TRADING HOURS
Thursday-Saturday
11am-3pm


Until Eyes Hear Sound

Lulu Books >>  Until Eyes Hear Sound (lulu.com)


Perceptions:

Amazon >>  Perceptions : Steven, Ivor, Knight, Derrick: Amazon.com.au: Books
Lulu Books >>  Perceptions (lulu.com)


Tullawalla:

Amazon >> Tullawalla A Meeting Place Where My Empty Hands are Full of Memories and Rhymes : Steven, Ivor: Amazon.com.au: Books


OR: >> You may email me directly for a signed copy at
ivorrs20@gmail.com





Ivor Steven (c) July 2024

Throwback Friday, Birds in Flight

On my morning walkies with Frankie, I like trying to photograph birds in flight, and since my book launch for “Until Eyes Hear Sound” is only 3 weeks away, I thought I would repost my poem “Birds in Flight” (Chapter 1, page 14)





Birds in Flight


Our spirit birds sleep all night

Then emanate at first light

To resume their dedicated flights

Our watchtower sentinels of Mother Earth

Who sacredly ascend at first light

Forever in flight, since nature’s worldly birth









All Books. Now Available At:

Creative Geelong MAY’D Shop,
Shop 15/Centrepoint Arcade
132 Little Malop St, Geelong
TRADING HOURS
Thursday-Saturday
11am-3pm


Until Eyes Hear Sound

Lulu Books >>  Until Eyes Hear Sound (lulu.com)


Perceptions:

Amazon >>  Perceptions : Steven, Ivor, Knight, Derrick: Amazon.com.au: Books
Lulu Books >>  Perceptions (lulu.com)


Tullawalla:

Amazon >> Tullawalla A Meeting Place Where My Empty Hands are Full of Memories and Rhymes : Steven, Ivor: Amazon.com.au: Books


OR: >> You may email me directly for a signed copy at
ivorrs20@gmail.com





Ivor Steven (c) July 2024

Good Morning!



Good Morning!



“Are you Awake?”
” Of course! You just licked my face”
“It’s time for my brekkie”
“Oh Frankie, I’m warm and cozy here”
“I know, I slept here beside you”
“Temp’s only 3 Degrees, I’ll get up
when it warms up”
“Woof, woof!”
“Ok, you win”
(Hmmm, he always does)








Ivor Steven (c) July 4th 2024

Standing Upright (a repost from August 2020)

Over at Weekly Prompts, the Wednesday Challenge is: Resilience
To visit their fabulous site click on >> Here


Below is, the original introduction from my post in August 2020.
“Hello dear readers, I’ve been writing this poem over the last three days, and I was struggling to obtain any rhythm between thoughts and words, then I saw a wondrous photo on Derrick Knight’s blog/website this morning, (which is my ‘Featured Image’ above), and his picture of the glorious old oak tree, immediately channeled my thoughts, into that of strength and “resilience“, and from there, my Title was formed, and my words started to become a more cohesive piece of poetry…. Thank you, Derrick, for allowing me to use this beautiful and impressive photo, with my humble little poem.” >> https://derrickjknight.com/

Please Note; “Standing Upright” appears in our book “Perceptions”, a Collaboration of Poems and Photographs from Ivor Steven and Derrick Knight (Nov 2022)


Standing Upright

My heart’s bruised from bygone blood-stones
Threaded together by the spirits of old bones
And there resting within my aging body’s sway
I am shedding soulful droplets on sunny days

The world’s foul winds had blown me off my feet
After wobbling down cold and dusty streets
Then a modern medicine man came with his young tribe
Re-tuning my broken pieces with rhythmical vibes
And they declared my heartstrings to be plucky enough
To handle tomorrow’s mystery masks and travelers’ handcuffs









All Books. Now Available At:

Creative Geelong MAY’D Shop,
Shop 15/Centrepoint Arcade
132 Little Malop St, Geelong
TRADING HOURS
Thursday-Saturday
11am-3pm


Until Eyes Hear Sound

Lulu Books >>  Until Eyes Hear Sound (lulu.com)


Perceptions:

Amazon >>  Perceptions : Steven, Ivor, Knight, Derrick: Amazon.com.au: Books
Lulu Books >>  Perceptions (lulu.com)


Tullawalla:

Amazon >> Tullawalla A Meeting Place Where My Empty Hands are Full of Memories and Rhymes : Steven, Ivor: Amazon.com.au: Books


OR: >> You may email me directly for a signed copy at
ivorrs20@gmail.com





Ivor Steven (c) July 2024

Under the Weeping Trees (a Limerick)

As many of you know, I am an appointed writer with the Coffee House Writers Magazine in the poetry section, and in the poetry group, we are given a monthly assignment on a different poem format. This month’s poetry classroom topic was to write a ‘Limerick’ … Below is the Limerick I presented for my July Assignment.

Featured Image: was taken by Derrick Knight, who kindly allows me to reproduce his wonderful photos on my poetry Website.
>> https://derrickjknight.com/2024/07/01/i-didnt-leave-the-car/



Under the Weeping Trees (a Limerick)

Resting here on my knees
Under the tall weeping trees
Waiting for my anxious mother
She’s out looking for my silly brother
He’s randy and went chasing the pretty fillies









All Books. Now Available At:

Creative Geelong MAY’D Shop,
Shop 15/Centrepoint Arcade
132 Little Malop St, Geelong
TRADING HOURS
Thursday-Saturday
11am-3pm

Until Eyes Hear Sound

Lulu Books >>  Until Eyes Hear Sound (lulu.com)


Perceptions:

Amazon >>  Perceptions : Steven, Ivor, Knight, Derrick: Amazon.com.au: Books
Lulu Books >>  Perceptions (lulu.com)


Tullawalla:

Amazon >> Tullawalla A Meeting Place Where My Empty Hands are Full of Memories and Rhymes : Steven, Ivor: Amazon.com.au: Books


OR: >> You may email me directly for a signed copy at
ivorrs20@gmail.com





Ivor Steven (c) July 2024

The Cloud’s Tides Are Turning (a Tanka)






The Cloud’s Tides Are Turning (a Tanka)

Imperceptible
Is the waxen crescent moon
To the naked eye
In the wispy midday sky
Where the cloud’s tides are turning










All Books. Now Available At:

Creative Geelong MAY’D Shop,
Shop 15/Centrepoint Arcade
132 Little Malop St, Geelong
TRADING HOURS
Thursday-Saturday
11am-3pm

Until Eyes Hear Sound

Lulu Books >>  Until Eyes Hear Sound (lulu.com)


Perceptions:

Amazon >>  Perceptions : Steven, Ivor, Knight, Derrick: Amazon.com.au: Books
Lulu Books >>  Perceptions (lulu.com)


Tullawalla:

Amazon >> Tullawalla A Meeting Place Where My Empty Hands are Full of Memories and Rhymes : Steven, Ivor: Amazon.com.au: Books


OR: >> You may email me directly for a signed copy at
ivorrs20@gmail.com





Ivor Steven (c) July 2024

Reflections (a Haiku)

Our walk path was covered in many shallow puddles and the daylight was sufficient for me to photograph some interesting reflections on the ground and in the sky …






Reflections (a Haiku)


Nature’s reflections

Shades of daylight everywhere

Kissing everything








All Books. Now Available At:

Creative Geelong MAY’D Shop,
Shop 15/Centrepoint Arcade
132 Little Malop St, Geelong
TRADING HOURS
Thursday-Saturday
11am-3pm



Until Eyes Hear Sound

Lulu Books >>  Until Eyes Hear Sound (lulu.com)


Perceptions:

Amazon >>  Perceptions : Steven, Ivor, Knight, Derrick: Amazon.com.au: Books
Lulu Books >>  Perceptions (lulu.com)


Tullawalla:

Amazon >> Tullawalla A Meeting Place Where My Empty Hands are Full of Memories and Rhymes : Steven, Ivor: Amazon.com.au: Books


OR: >> You may email me directly for a signed copy at
ivorrs20@gmail.com





Ivor Steven (c) July 2024