A Throwback Friday Poem – Ivor.Plumber/Poet

Throwback Friday, Please! No More Encores (Written by Frankie)

Quote: “Why do the war’s doors stay closed to friendly paws?” 🐾 … Frankie 🐶

Frankie wrote this poem on October 21st, 2024. In just a few lines, he imagines a peaceful world with an open door, an earthen floor, and a green décor. It is also a heartfelt plea that humanity stops applauding war’s repeated appearances.

Before the poem, here is Matisyahu’s inspiring “One Day”.

Please! No More Encores (Written by Frankie)

When war is over
My door will stay open
The floor is earthen
My decor is green
I adore the theme

Please!
No more encores
I abhor
The vapour
Of war

Frankie asks for no more encores. The music that follows reflects on why they keep returning, disguised and renamed, as though each generation must learn the same lesson again.

Until Eyes Hear Sound

Amazon >> Amazon.com : 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 … and I can send you a PayPal invoice
for the Book, plus Postage.

Ivor Steven © October 2026

Throwback Friday, Our Last Stand

This is a poem I haven’t seen since writing it in October 2019. Today, as is my way, I’ve made a few small revisions, but the essence of the original remains intact.

Our Last Stand (Revised)

Crawling over barren pastures of land,
On detergent feet and hands,
Old arms are now empty of nature’s seeds,
I only see future investment greed.

And history’s lessons are hard to understand,
When we’re taught disrespect by corporate bands,
Who only extinguish life into grains of sand,
Instead of regenerating our planet’s last stand

Originally written in 2019 and revisited today, Our Last Stand finds a fitting companion in Archive’s haunting Again, a song that echoes the poem’s reflective mood and enduring message.

Until Eyes Hear Sound

Amazon >> Amazon.com : 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 … and I can send you a PayPal invoice
for the Book, plus Postage.

Ivor Steven © October 2026

Throwback Friday, “Man Overboard!”

Today’s Throwback Friday poem comes from this time last year, and during these days of feeling like an unwound clock, “Man Overboard!” feels like an appropriate choice.
Daylight Saving steals an hour, but where does it go? This poem asks, with a wink and a sigh, where time goes as it slips overboard. Paired with Tame Impala’s hypnotic groove, it becomes a meditation on time’s absurd disappearance.

“Man Overboard!”

Time vanished overboard,
and was last seen going forward.

Who will rescue the lost hour?
Who has the righteous power,
inside the clock’s stoic tower?

Somehow it doesn’t matter
that no one heard the clatter.

Time has no protective hands.
Time is not a rubber band,
nor a loose grain of sand.

I do not understand
how time’s forgotten hour was banned
and stored away in never-never land.

Sometimes events happen without explanation. While the poem wonders where the missing hour went, Tame Impala’s “Let It Happen” suggests we relax, let go, and drift with the mystery.

Until Eyes Hear Sound

Amazon >> Amazon.com : 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 … and I can send you a PayPal invoice
for the Book, plus Postage.

Ivor Steven © October 2026

Throwback Friday, Dragons and Faeries

Earlier today, my dragon returned to the page in Part 1 of My Dragon, The Tetralogy — a story of flight, memory, and the quiet ache of what might have been. For this week’s Throwback Friday poem, I’m revisiting a poem from May 2019 that carries the same creature into a different sky. It’s a dream‑journey through New York’s mythic corners, where dragons brush past torches, faeries linger in the trees, and hope rises from the ashes.
Below is the poem as I first wrote it — now gently punctuated, but still holding its original fire

Scenes from my 2019 wander through New York — the places where dragons, dreams, and Lennon’s whisper still linger.

This poem first appeared in my debut book Tullawalla, Chapter 3 — “Dragons, Wizards, Faeries, and a Spacecraft”, page 55.

Dragons and Faeries

My dragon flew me to New York,
His scaly tail was singed
by the stoic statue’s torch
as we were landing upon Central Park.

And in the city’s mystical forest I stood
among strawberry fields and woods.
Atop the plaque of my dreams,
I imagined how life should’ve been –
my naked soul, a vision unseen.

I have a dream, like John’s world:
Togetherness, love pristine,
the apple uneaten
and the snake shyly beaten.

I see peace, within evil’s tiredness,
burnt-out flames of the devil’s nakedness
leaving us life’s leftover ashes.
Then the peace dove shall arise from the ruins,
and the lost faeries will return as humans.

And as these memories rise through mist and music, the old dream leans in once more… imagine.

Until Eyes Hear Sound

Amazon >> Amazon.com : 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 … and I can send you a PayPal invoice
for the Book, plus Postage.

Ivor Steven © October 2026

Throwback Friday, Strings

With Saturday night’s Cohen Noir: Celebrating the Music, Words & Legacy of Leonard Cohen drawing near, I’ve been revisiting the quiet ache and devotion in his work. Today’s Throwback Friday poem, Strings, was first written in June 2017, shaped in part by Cohen’s song Show Me the Place. With this year marking a decade since his passing, it feels fitting to return to the piece. I’ve revised it a few times over the years — the original title was Violin Strings — but the heart of the poem has remained true. The featured image above is a scanned print from The Wordless Songbook, Leonard Cohen, by George A. Walker, a treasured book from my personal library.

Below are two recent fantail moments from our morning walkies — small, bright pauses that seemed to echo the gentle mood of today’s Throwback Friday.

Strings

I’m singing a song about you,
Singing words, both wistful and true.
From my heart to my soul, the veins —
They’re as tight as violin strings.
I needed you to take my hand,
Take my hand and show me the way.
Show me the way, to a formal debut,
Show me the way, into your dancing shoes.

I needed you to take my dreams,
Take my dreams and show me how to behave.
Show me the way, to your family home,
Show me how to drink from your holy grail.
I needed you to take my open heart,
Take my heart and show me how to pray.
Show me the way into your world,
Show me how to fly, in your Milky Way.

I needed you to write some heavenly notes,
Take my violin and show me how to play.
Show me the way to your harp’s wings,
Show me the way into your heartstrings.

As I revisit this piece in the lead‑up to Saturday night’s Cohen Noir: Celebrating the Music, Words & Legacy of Leonard Cohen, I’m reminded again of how deeply his work threads through my own. For anyone who wants to hear the quiet ache that first inspired Strings, here’s Leonard Cohen’s Show Me the Place — a song that still opens the same door.

Until Eyes Hear Sound

Amazon >> Amazon.com : 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 … and I can send you a PayPal invoice
for the Book, plus Postage.

Ivor Steven © September 2026

Throwback Friday, From the Mountains to the Sea

A year ago, during a visit with my Canadian cousins, I left Vancouver Island for Edmonton and met my Alberta cousin in the small town of Wainwright. Soon after, we set off on a three‑day road trip back to the island, travelling through Jasper and the towering Rocky Mountains — a journey carved into memory.

A Picnic in the Rocky’s

Leaving Salmon Arm

On the outskirts of Vancouver, heading towards the Ferry

The ferry from Vancouver to Sidney (Vancouver Island)

From the Mountains to the Sea

I am gradually drifting down,
From out of the mountains’ smoky shroud,
Toward the seaside playground,
To rejoin a welcoming crowd.

Where, around the magical island,
There will be more stories unfold,
As time quickly filters through my hand;
But these precious moments will be all molded
Into poetic lines, written in charcoal and gold.

My Canadian cousins pointed me toward this Great Big Sea classic — a spirited companion for any journey drifting from mountains to shoreline.

Until Eyes Hear Sound

Amazon >> Amazon.com : 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 … and I can send you a PayPal invoice
for the Book, plus Postage.

Ivor Steven © September 2026

Throwback Friday, Fallen Ancestors

Twelve months ago, while visiting my cousins on Vancouver Island, I tapped out a small poem on my iPhone — a moment shaped by cedar shadows, cold tides, and old family echoes. Today’s Throwback Friday returns to that quiet day, and to the fallen ancestors the island seemed to remember.

Fallen Ancestors

Above
I saw time drift across the sky.

Below
I heard a grey, waterlogged tree cry,
“Is this the graveyard where my
fallen ancestors have been left to die?”

There
“Against the sea wall’s merciless granite crown,
surrounded by cold water crashing around…

Please
“Take my hand, guide me down,
so I can cover them with my green nightgown.”

A quiet echo of the sea’s old memory — as the tide carries its stories forward, this song keeps a heart in the water.

Throwback Friday, Destination

Continuing the Leonard Cohen thread from yesterday, today’s Throwback Friday poem, Destination (June 2024), began as a “writing between the lines” exercise for our Dome Poets group here in Geelong. Using Cohen’s The Goal as my guide (shared below), I tried to shape a companion poem that sits quietly between each of his lines.

Destination, by Ivor Steven

The curtains are open
The front door is ajar
So, I can hear her sing
From her distant star

I do not own much
My soul is a gold mine
I haven’t lost my touch
My heart is kind

I share what I have
I have hope and love
Couldn’t stop the flood
Couldn’t hold her glove

I walk alone
I look content
Regrets are few
Despair ferments

I push on and on
I do not complain
I’m still alive
I’m numb to the pain

No one asks
No one knows
About finality
Under the snow

===========================

“The Goal”, by Leonard Cohen

I can’t leave my house
Or answer the phone
I’m going down again
But I’m not alone

Settling at last
Accounts of the soul
This for the trash
That paid in full

As for the fall, it
Began long ago
Can’t stop the rain
Can’t stop the snow

I sit in my chair
I look at the street
The neighbor returns
My smile of defeat

I move with the leaves
I shine with the chrome
I’m almost alive
I’m almost at home

No one to follow
And nothing to teach
Except that the goal
Falls short of the reach

And finally, before the night fades, the poem whose shadows and truths shaped my own lines — Leonard Cohen’s The Goal.

Until Eyes Hear Sound

Amazon >> Amazon.com : 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 … and I can send you a PayPal account,
for the Book, plus Postage.

Throwback Friday, Soundless

In keeping with this week’s theme on clouds, light, and the quiet mysteries of the universe, I’m revisiting a reflective poem from August 2018. I’ve made a few small word changes — gentle adjustments that preserve the essence of the original piece.

Soundless (Revised)

My celestial dusk is earthward bound.
Evening clouds are not making a sound.
I cannot hear her moon shadows hit the ground,
and our silent night is being slowly drowned.
Then my midnight queen arises, to be crowned —
the Goddess of Light … and I am spellbound.

A soft companion piece, echoing the poem’s silence, carried on a gentle breath of light.

Until Eyes Hear Sound

Amazon >> Amazon.com : 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 … and I can send you a PayPal account,
for the Book, plus Postage.

Throwback Friday, Burnt Toast And A Cold Shower

Some mornings test us in small, stubborn ways — cold water, burnt toast, lights that won’t flick on. This old poem from July 2018 reminds me that even on those days, we can reset, breathe, and begin again.

Burnt Toast And A Cold Shower

When it’s so hard to get out of my warm bed,
I force myself to throw the sheets off,
and I face another day again.

When the light doesn’t go on above my head,
I replace the globe and flick the switch,
and I see again

When my shower hot water turns cold,
I patiently wait for the boiler to reheat,
and I shall be ready again.

When the toaster burns my bread,
I turn the grey dial down to three,
and I restart again

When the kettle runs bone dry,
I dutifully refill the jug,
and enjoy a cuppa again.

When breakfast is done, and it’s time to run,
I feel the advantage of being alive,
and I smile at my world again.

And sometimes a song is all it takes to steady the morning again.