A Throwback Friday Poem – Page 4

Throwback Friday, Quietly I Exist

Today’s Throwback Friday Poem appears in my revised edition of “Tullawalla”, July 2022, and was originally written as a travel log piece about my overseas journey to, America, Philadelphia, in May 2019.

Quietly I Exist

I’m writing words from the edge of time

And pondering my life’s lack of rhyme

Thinking every moment is an ironic crime

And quietly, I exist only in mime

Life is a mountain of ups and downs

Sharp thorns and slippery crowns

For me, every moment is a good day

Behind me, I leave yesterday

And today I’ll by-pass midday

On my way to bathing in tomorrow’s sun-rays

We are not here to control nature

But we are responsible for her future

I don’t think humans are meant to be

Poisoning the sea with plastic and mercury

I cannot be the king of this stagnant world

But I am free as my wings unfurled

My eyes have been opened again

To reveal the sky, sunshine and rain

Now I see beyond every yellow door

There was once an original world

So, I’ll turn the latch to discover more

And give realities of life a whirl

Ivor Steven (c) Sept 2025

Dusty Passport

Today’s Throwback Friday poem is from February 2019, when I was preparing myself for a trip to America/New York/Philadelphia, to visit my Philadelphia “cousins”, and today, here I am on Vancouver Island visiting my Canadian “cousins”.

Dusty Passport

Here I was resting, home again from the hospital
After a second stroke had laid me up
I was rekindling thoughts of travelling to America
An adventure I’d always promised myself
Night is not always dark, you know
Firstly, I had to find my passport
Yes, I’d hidden it somewhere safe
After turning the bedroom inside out
Then, throwing the lounge room upside down
The lost document was on a garage shelf
Looking dusty, but still only five years old
Jumping for joy, you’d think I’d found gold
Hardly ever been stamped, a Chinese one, that’s all
Many years have passed since my last call
I clasped that passport firmly in my hand
And I said, “It’s time”, before my clock runs out of sand

Ivor Steven (c) August 2025

Throwback Friday, Birds in Flight

A Welcome Swallow in flight

This morning on my walkie with Frankie, I was lucky enough to photograph a ‘Welcome Swallow’ in flight. So, appropriately, today’s Throwback Friday poem is “Birds in Flight”, written in February 2023. The poem also appears in my book, ‘Until Eyes Hear Sound’ (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

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 © August 2025

Throwback Friday, Beyond A Blade Of Grass

Today’s Throwback Friday was written in April 2019, which was just before my trip to New York and Philadelphia. I have suitably revised my poem to coincide with my trip to Canada in “12” days.

Beyond a Blade Of Grass (Revised)

Believe it or not
I’m travelling around the block
Finally, I’ve refurbished my Itmims Yacht
And I’m about to discover a different spot
Reality has me flying to a new port
I’ve been invited to walk the walk
And talk about my amazing life
The long journey of endless strife
And how, the answer was found
From inside a body unsound

Go listen to the Messiah
You’ll not get any higher
Go reach for your stars
Dream of landing on Mars
Go steer a new T-model car
Even Victoria isn’t too far
Go find your favourite bike
Pedal your way to greater heights
Go explore, beyond your blade of grass
See the universe outside your heart of glass

Ivor Steven (c) August 2025

Throwback Friday, In the Full Moon’s Afterglow

It’ll be a full moon tomorrow, and appropriately, my Throwback Friday is a full moon poem, which I wrote in May 2024.
Please note that all attached images were taken by me late this afternoon (Thursday).

In the Full Moon’s Afterglow

My world’s worn-out words flow
From the torn sunflower meadows
To the silent streets of Moscow
Written on the hills of Dnipro in blue-line lingo
Beyond the reach of the full moon’s afterglow
And painted in lyrical tempo with hypnotic gusto

Am I to be another muted scarecrow
Mutilated by the warlords’ errant crossbows

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 © May 2025

Throwback Friday, I Feel The Sky

Today’s Throwback Friday poem is from October 2021. The poem also appears in my third book, Until Eyes Hear Sound, Chapter 8, Poetry in Slow Motion.

I Feel the Sky

I am creating a verse from beyond my cage
Here, surrounded by the essence of a new age
Spring blossom floating on a sea of loose pages
Soaring on the wings of yesterday’s paper darts

I was finding words in unusual places
On dirty microwave plates
Under shaggy-pile carpets
Between last night’s lonely sheets
And walking down empty streets

Inside the Box Office Cafe, I sit
Observing the world below my feet
An old wooden floor of weathered planks
And table bases made from engine cranks

On the open verandah I can feel the sky
And I write on these blank lines
About today’s invisible freedom, before my ink runs dry

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

Throwback Friday, Beyond Sunset

I found this poem that I first posted in February 2018. I hope you enjoy the re-run, and as is my way, I’ve made a few edits.

Beyond Sunset (Revised)

Gently, the dying moonlight awakens my dawn
And the baptizing sunrise waters my eyes
Drowning the silent hours of my shallow day
And dimming my hopes of playing in the hay

A hazy dusk shrouds the cemetery lawn
And the rituals of sunset beckon my evening plight
Flailing and falling upon sleepless night
And I lie prone under my weighted crown

Ivor Steven (c) July 2025

Throwback Friday, The Odds and Ends, I Send

Today’s Throwback Friday is from February 2023. The poem was created from anecdotes that I had written and sent to my fellow bloggers’ sites, as replies to their articles/poems.
In order of stanza appearance below,
– V.J. > https://vjknutson.org/
– Kate > https://aroused.blog/
– Beth > https://ididnthavemyglasseson.com/

The Odds and Ends, I send

Our head reaches for the clouds
But our heart forgets to speak aloud

We are all little fish in a big sea
Swimming below the atmosphere
Created by nature’s life-giving trees

Not all rocks
Are not just rocks
Some old rocks
When you study their socks
And listen to their knees knock
They “Have rocked around the clock”

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

Throwback Friday, Five Shades of Grey

Here in Geelong we have been experiencing a wintry blast over the last few days, so appropriately I have chosen “Five Shades of Grey” for my Throwback Friday poem. I originally wrote the poem in April 2019

Five Shades of Grey

Daylight turns into night
Ravens scatter in mid-flight
Dark clouds overlay
Five shades of grey
Thor’s hammer roars
His spark of fire, soar
Fiercely, a flaming bolt strikes
Piercing frightened psyches

Ivor Steven (c) March 2021

Throwback Friday, Floating on the Moon

Today’s Throwback Friday was written in January 2021

Hello readers and followers, today, I am continuing with my theme of “Moom” poems. If you need to chat with me, “I am up here floating on the moon.“

Floating On The Moon

I am not always wrong
And at times, I may have been right
Behind my mask, I smile
And at times, I grimace

Numbness has entered my bones
Clumsiness guides my pen
Awkwardness precedes my stride
Uneasiness resonates in my voice

I am not able to walk on water
And at times, I have sunk like a stone
I live within my soul’s cocoon
And at times, I am floating on the moon

Ivor Steven (c) June 2025