“When your father’s name is etched in stone, it is never as indelible as the etching in your heart” … Colleen Brown
Alex Steven (Dad), February 5th, 1924 – July 3rd, 2015
I’m Like Dad (a Senryu)
Sometimes I am sad
But I am not mad or bad
My heart’s just like Dad’s
Ivor Steven (c) July 3rd, 2025
Hello, dear readers and followers. I write for Coffee House Writers magazine (USA) fortnightly, and my poem “I Remember” (a Rondeau) is in this week’s edition. …
To read the poem, please click the link below to visit my Coffee House Writers Magazine article.
>> https://coffeehousewriters.com/i-remember/
A rondeau is a fixed-form poem that originated in French lyrical poetry. It typically consists of 15 lines, divided into three stanzas (a quintet, a quatrain, and a sestet), with a refrain and a specific rhyme scheme. Here’s a simple guide to help you craft one:
Structure of a Rondeau.
Ivor Steven (c) July 2025
Hello, dear readers and followers. I write for Coffee House Writers magazine (USA) fortnightly, and my poem “Sorry” (a Kyrielle) is in this week’s edition. …
To read the poem, please click the link below to visit my Coffee House Writers Magazine article.
>> https://coffeehousewriters.com/sorry/
A Kyrielle is a French form of rhyming poetry written in quatrains (a stanza consisting of 4 lines), and each quatrain contains a repeating line or phrase as a refrain (usually appearing as the last line of each stanza). Each line within the poem consists of only eight syllables. There is no limit to the number of stanzas a Kyrielle may have, but three is considered the accepted minimum.
Some popular rhyming schemes for a Kyrielle are: aabB, ccbB, ddbB, with B being the repeated line, or abaB, cbcB, dbdB.
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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 © June 2025
Hello, dear readers and followers. I write for Coffee House Writers magazine (USA) fortnightly, and my poem “Dusty Photos” is in this week’s edition. …
To read the poem, please click the link below to visit my Coffee House Writers Magazine article.
>> https://coffeehousewriters.com/dusty-photos/
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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
“Her moon shadows shyly tiptoe through my nights
as my hazy dreams glow under her celestial lights”
I am ‘Moon-struck’ this week, and here is another “Moon” poem, which I originally wrote in May 2018, and today I am reposting the version that I revised in October 2021 …
Moon Shadows And Celestial Lights
I stood alone
In my second-hand clothes
holding her worn-out soul
Silently
I placed her ashes
In a brick wall
Years of heartache
Hidden in a chasm of pain
Moments in time
Now resting in peace
How does tomorrow become another day?
How does the past live with today?
Her moon shadows shyly tiptoe through my nights
As my hazy dreams glow under her celestial lights
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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
Lullaby Rhyme
Once upon a time
There was a mum called Esther
In my heart
There was no one better
And now her soul
Sings me a lullaby rhyme
Ivor Steven (c) May 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, the 9th of May, here in Australia, the day of my mother’s birthday and my wife’s funeral day, and it’ll be Mother’s Day on 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
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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
“This wall, built of bricks
Breaks my spirit and my bones
Life’s hurdles are hard” … This Wall (a Senryu May 3rd, 2025)
Arriving and Leaving, Visiting Her
arriving
via the cemetery gate
holding her flowers
hands quivering
heart quickens
bowing silently
reminiscing
smiling
wondering why
closing time
and visiting time
co-exist in life
leaving
via the cemetery path
renewing goodbyes
crying silently
breathing slowly
smiling
wondering why
closing time
and visiting time
co-exist in life
Ivor Steven (c) May 3rd, 2025
Thanks For the Dance, or My Foot Went Numb (a Rhyming Tu-aiku)
My fingers are thumbs
I cannot pick up the crumbs
Nor pluck the ripe plums
My right foot went numb
Her eternal dance did come
Life is a hum-drum
Ivor Steven (c) May 3rd, 2025
Today’s Throwback poem was written before I started my website and is from June 2012, not long after Carole passed away (13 years ago tomorrow).
For unexplainable reasons, the nostalgic piece has not found its way into any of my “3 books”. Maybe this unheralded poem will prompt me to complete my fourth book!
Where’s That Dream
I have seen the universe through to the stars beyond
There is a deep darkness, she is gone, she is gone
I saw her smile crack from the pain
There was a sorrow, she caught it tomorrow
I have seen the moon through the burning sun
Where is that planet she is walking on?
I saw her eyes crying tears of sand
Where is that beach she is lying on?
I have seen the ocean through the broken coral
Where is that ship she is sailing on?
I saw her body serene and frail
Where are the ashes she is covered in?
I have seen the earth open, swallowing the multitude whole
Where is that chasm she is falling through?
I saw her gentle soul disappear out of sight
Where is that secret haven she is flying to?
I have seen the land go through violent storms
Where are the winds of time she is spread upon?
I saw her heart, her love, for all of you and me
Where is that dream she has left us to find?
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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
Ivor.Plumber/Poet 