In the wake of the recent devastating storms in the Philippines, nature’s fragility echoes through broken branches and scattered leaves. This Tanka reflects on the quiet aftermath—where hope lingers, and the question of restoration remains tenderly unanswered.
Neurotic Wind (a Tanka)
I hope – and wonder –
after the neurotic wind
shyly stops blowing:
who’ll repair the broken trees,
and rescue the orphaned leaves?
Ivor Steven © October 2025
My Dark Apparition
I saw a mellow sun
Melt into a grey sky
I saw a shallow moon
Fall under a dark curtain
I sliced the sickly atmosphere
With the Reaper’s shadowy sickle
I heard a little wattlebird
Tip-toeing through the broken trees
I listened to a killer whale
Crawling along a black, oily beach
I felt the stained seashells
Squelch into my murky footprints
I was dozing on a bed of tanbark
And after my brown eyes opened
I wondered. Was I having a nightmare
Or was my dark apparition real?
Ivor Steven (c) June 2025
Live and Let Die
The misty Full Moon sighed
My garden Magpie cried
And the Twilight Bunnies
In a startled stride
Ran away to hide
The Titan Arum* flower had died
And with compassionate pride
I felt like a loveless bride
Speechless and teary-eyed
* Titan Arum, the Corpse Plant.
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) November 2024
Sailing, Around the World
With my spaceship’s sails full
And the spinnaker pulling us west
Our journey around the world
Will be an expeditious adventure
Navigating our way over polluted oceans
And above war-ravaged ground
I’ll be confirming, first-hand
That our planet is, water, green, and round
And not a flat contaminated compound
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) September 2024
Ivor.Plumber/Poet 