Photos – Ivor.Plumber/Poet

Is Time A Daydream?

A rainbow above, a wattlebird lifting below — and somewhere between them, a little daydream opened. This poem follows that gentle climb into thin air, where time loosens, and words drift without lines.

Is Time A Daydream?

Wattlebirds and rainbows
do not rhyme,
but both are sublime,
and glow in the sunshine
there above my eyeline.

Perhaps a mirage of mine
inside my mind
during my daydream time.

Where life is not a crime,
and the tall alpines
are painless to climb.

Up there,
beyond thin air,
I breathtakingly find —
only words with no lines.

For those still wandering between half-waking and half-dreaming… as daydream time drifts beyond thin air, let this beautiful song carry the journey a little further.

Ivor Steven © October 2026

Half Moon, Half Asleep, Half Awake

Moon adrift in cloud.
Pigeon in full flight.
A weary poet somewhere between the two.

Half Moon, Half Asleep, Half Awake

This morning I am sluggishly half asleep.
The chunky, cloudy sky’s
delaying my half-open eyes
from having a closer peep.

Today I am drowsy and half awake
The heavy, humid atmosphere’s
preventing the release
of my other half’s quiet airbrakes.

Outside, among the surreal world’s
shrouds, I nonchalantly await
for my animated cosmetic twirls
to create an awakening earthquake.

No expectations, just a half moon, a passing pigeon. The poem arrived slowly. So did the afternoon. So did this song.

Ivor Steven © October 2026

The Ghouls of Halloween (a Troiku)

This poem originated as a poetic response to Nancy’s Halloween poem, Tis The Season, written in a poetry form that was new to me: the Troiku. Intrigued by the format, I accepted the challenge and crafted my first Troiku.
Nancy – Tis The Season – The Elephant’s Trunk

The Ghouls of Halloween (a Troiku)

The Halloween moon
Bright-eyed in the twilight sky
No one heard you sigh

The Halloween moon
Enters the haunted tree house
“Don’t be afraid”

Bright-eyed in the twilight sky
The orange night glares
“No! Don’t go up there”

No one heard you sigh
Ghouls from dark Pluto
“Here to rob me of my treats”

With the Halloween moon still bright-eyed in the twilight sky, here’s a little musical company for the ghouls from dark Pluto who weren’t travelling alone…

Ivor Steven © October 2026

My Dragon, The Tetralogy: Part 2, My Dragon – The Revival.

Yesterday, Geelong Cereal published the second part of my dragon series, My Dragon, The Tetralogy: Part 2, My Dragon – The Revival.
Geelong Cereal is a free online magazine showcasing local writing and creative arts, with a special love for serial fiction and stories from the Geelong region. It’s a welcoming space for writers at every stage of their creative journey, and I’m delighted that my dragon has found a home there.
A heartfelt thank‑you to Mel, Geelong Cereal’s editor, whose care and encouragement helped bring this latest chapter to life.
>> My Dragon, The Tetralogy: Part 2. My Dragon, The Revival

Below is the image of the poem as it appeared in the magazine.

With Dragon’s Young Years drifting through my headphones, I returned to the world of my dragon. The song’s gentle reflections on the passage of time felt like an appropriate soundtrack for a tale of revival and second beginnings.

Ivor Steven © October 2026

Successfully Unsuccessful

Does a bird measure the success of its flight, or simply fly? After a moderately successful day at the market, I carried that question home. Sometime during the night, it became a poem.

Successfully Unsuccessful

Am I unsuccessfully successful
or
Successfully unsuccessful?

What is successful?
Why be successful?
Who defines success?

Is being successful?
simply being successful
at being unsuccessful?
or
being a failure at being unsuccessful?

Is Corporate greed being successful?
or
self-righteousness being unsuccessful?

What is successful?
Who defines success?

As the magpie continues its flight…
The poem ends here. The questions do not.

Ivor Steven © October 2026

Nature’s Pink Matinee (a Tanka)

Another pink twilight this evening reminded me of a tanka I drafted some months ago. As the colours gathered across the western sky, it seemed the perfect time to finally share it.

And here are last evening’s twilight photos

Nature’s Pink Matinee (a Tanka)

A pink twilight sky
We, the fortunate witnesses
Stand here wondering
Why nature’s matinee shows
Are never on earth sold out

Tonight’s audience may have been small, but nature’s performance was unforgettable. 🎵🌸

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.

Creative Geelong Market Day, This Saturday, October 17th

It’s Market Day this Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
* Our popular monthly markets are all undercover at Centrepoint Arcade on the third Saturday of every month.
* They feature art, unique goods from local makers, second-hand goods, plants, books, and more.
* There are also open art studios, Yesterday Vintage, Untether Gallery, and the May’d Shop.

All at, Centrepoint Arcade
132 Little Malop St, Geelong
From 10 am to 3 pm

And I’ll be there with ‘Frankie’ and my “New Bookstall Set-up“

Presiding (a Haiku)

Some poems arrive quickly, while others rest patiently in the drafts. After a quiet wait of a few weeks, this haiku seemed ready to take its place among recent reflections on nature and birds.

Presiding (a Haiku)

Here I calmly be
Overseeing twilight time
The day’s final stand

Today’s haiku is accompanied by Glen Hansard’s beautiful live performance of “Her Mercy”, a song that seemed to share the poem’s quiet patience and reflective spirit.

Nature’s Wings

Watching birds in flight, I am often struck by their grace and seeming freedom from the burdens we humans create for ourselves. Inspired by a series of bird photographs, this poem begins with nature’s gifts before quietly turning its gaze towards a troubled world below.

Nature’s Wings

Birds have wondrous wings
and can also sprightly sing

Birds’ lovely lightweight feathers
can glide and hover forever

Birds have perceptive eyes
and do not criticise or demonise

Birds possess sensitive ears
and escape the world’s warring fears

Birds shun the battered ground
while eyes still hear that shattered sound

While shaping this poem at the café, I heard “Lift” by Marisa Anderson and felt this gentle melody drifting on the same wings that inspired today’s poem.