Alex Steven (Dad), February 5th 1924 – July 3rd 2015
Under a Clear Blue Sky, I’m Thinking of You
(Happy Birthday Dad)
One hundred and one years ago
When the summer sun
Arose for you
Did the afternoon moon?
Shine on you too
Ivor Steven (c) February 5th 2025
Me, sitting on Mum’s knee. … L to R, Carole, Aunties Elizabeth & Pearl, & Grandma
Grandma, and her 3 daughters. … My mum (left) and her lady relatives
G’day readers, It’s Friday morning here in Australia, the day after my mother’s birthday and Mother’s Day is this Sunday. Today’s Throwback Friday poem is, from September 2019.
The Woman In Me
Inside every man
There is a woman
The mother of his soul
The lady of his heart
The kindness in his touch
The passion in his blood
The woman who fostered
The way he shows love
Until Eyes Hear Sound: is NOW Available From,
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Tullawalla is Available From
Jaymah Press:https://www.jaymahpress.com.au/
Ivor Steven: email, ivorrs20@gmail.com
Amazon: search via, ‘Tullawalla by Ivor Steven’
AND
Perceptions is Now Available via:
Amazon: https://amzn.asia/d/4yFHWrT
Jaymah Press: https://www.jaymahpress.com.au/
OR: email me directly for a signed copy – ivorrs20@gmail.com
Ivor Steven (c) May 2024
At ‘The Dunes’ cafe/restaurant, Ocean Grove, near Mum and Dad’s old family home, “Tullawalla”.
Centenarians
Today
We had a family remembrance party
For our dear departed parents
They were both born in 1924
One hundred years ago!
Today
We gathered to celebrate
Their love and loyalty for each other
And to proudly honour
The love and incredible support
We all unconditionally received
Ivor Steven (c) May 2024
I wrote “Beyond Imagination” 5 years ago, while I was in rehab, recovering from my 3rd stroke, and somehow preparing my body for a long and arduous trip to Philadelphia. The attached poem below, “Dreams of the Heart” is a piece I wrote in Philadelphia, in May 2019.
Beyond Imagination (Revised)
This year (2019), after Easter
I’m flying north
Across the Pacific Ocean
Towards a place called America
From the west to the east coast
Landing at the Big Apple
To enjoy a five-day tourist bite
Then a train from Grand Central Station
For a debut meeting with my cousins in Philadelphia
My Dad’s far-away relatives
I shall rejoice in the reunion of our family’s spirits
Oh yes, my lifetime “Dream of the Heart” **
A dubious occurrence just two months ago
But now a reality beyond the realms of my imagination
** “Dreams of the Heart”
I cannot walk the continents
Like the intrepid Marco Polo
But my feet have felt the sands of time
Pass between my toes
I have not sailed the high seas
Like the courageous Christopher Columbus
But my body has bathed
In an ocean full of kind hearts
I’m yet to fly in space
Like the brave Neil Armstrong
But I have reached for the stars
And touched my soul’s dreams
Ivor Steven (c) February 2024
Saturday: My brother’s birthday party day
Frankie loves catching up with Aunty Tum
The birthday party feast
Frankie is impressed with the birthday cake.
Frankie makes himself comfortable after the party
Sunday: Ballarat’s Botanical Gardens & Lake Wendouree
It was time to visit the spectacular Botanical Gardens
With Frankie of course
The Picturesque Lake Wendouree
Frankie chats to the swan. Lawrie, Frankie, & me, sitting beside the Lake
Monday: Going back home to Geelong
Frankie’s happy in his car seat. The old Lal Lal Railway Station. The Lal Lal Falls Hotel
Frankie’s in his car seat. The historic Elaine Hotel. Elaine’s new Roadhouse Grocery Store.
The wind turbines near Elaine … but ironically, I’m running out of puff. It’s now 11.15pm Monday here in Geelong, and to produce this post has been a task on my little TV Computer … My desktop computer is back in Ballarat being repaired by my brother and the process could take a while …
My brother turned 71`and I turned 72 back in July, so this old Neil Young song seems appropriate for “Frankie’s Weekend”
Ivor Steven (c) October 2023
Mothers (a Tanka)
Happy Mothers Day
The queens of my universe
Your stars light my sky
Every day and every night
On my bended knees, I stay
Ivor Steven (c) May 2023
Mom’s birthday and Carole’s birthday were not far apart, and appropriately they enjoyed a very close relationship …
Today is my mother’s birthday, and next Sunday is Mothersday, and coincidently, today was also Carole’s funeral day … Here is my tribute to those 2 magnificent women in my life…
My Women
After I had left the hem
Without women
I could not have survived my time
I would not have braved the climb
Ladies you were my rhyme
My mothers of thyme
Helping me roll away the stone
Maintaining these old bones
Repairing the bridges, I had burnt
Reciting the messages, I had learnt
Cheering from the sidelines
Supporting my broken designs
Women of my rhymes
Mothers for a lifetime
Ivor Steven (c) May 9th 2023
It’s time to tidy up my mess
Clean up the room and get dressed
It’s time to pack my suitcase
Fill the travel bag and vacate this place
It’s time to put on my famous rocker shoes
And walk away from this dream come true
It’s time to say heartfelt goodbyes
To these wonderful Philadelphia guys
It’s time for final hugs and kisses
Sad farewells and best wishes
It’s time for my usual emotional tears
That have been stored away for years
Ivor Steven (c) May
Please Note: All photos in my article today were taken by my cousin Maureen, and she kindly allowed me to reproduce them here on my poetry website.
Today at Sunrise (a Tanka)
Dawn on Anzac Day
My cousins are in Torquay
United they stand
Remembering their fathers
Peace they cry, “Lest We Forget”
Ivor Steven (c) 25th April 2023
Put another log on the fire, while I travel to Tasmania with the two Philadelphia girls and three other Aussie cousins … Thursday 27th April – Monday 1st May
Afterglow
After a frenetic time
I feel like a burnt-out hollow log
My charred core is clinging
Onto nature’s dampened fringes
Of Autumn leaves and fallen branches
Where flora stealthily regenerates
Steadily, my diminished cavern
Is growing wider
And my ambient lantern
Is glowing brighter
Tullawalla is Available From
Jaymah Press:https://www.jaymahpress.com.au/
Ivor Steven: email, ivorrs20@gmail.com
Amazon: search via, ‘Tullawalla by Ivor Steven’
AND
Perceptions is Now Available via:
Amazon: https://amzn.asia/d/4yFHWrT
Jaymah Press: https://www.jaymahpress.com.au/
OR: email me directly for a signed copy – ivorrs20@gmail.com
Ivor Steven (c) April 2023
Ivor.Plumber/Poet 