picnic in the trees
among birds and butterflies
without council fees
Ivor Steven (c) Sept 2021
picnic in the trees
among birds and butterflies
without council fees
Ivor Steven (c) Sept 2021
On “Weekly Prompts” the Wednesday Challenge is, AUTUMN MAGIC. Please go and visit their fabulous site by clicking >> Here and the below poem is my response to their ‘prompt’ ..
Mad-hatters, No Matter the Season
The latter of matter
Did not scale the ladder
The origin of matter
Is in our hearts pitter-patter
Matter is neither flatter nor fatter
“What does it matter
If we are all mad-hatters”?
We are but leaves and twigs of the ground
Awaiting nature’s beckoning sounds
Ivor Steven (c) Sept 2021
Again, many thanks to the editor Kristiana for accepting my poems, and for all her hard work in producing this beautiful anthology. The publication features the work of many talented poets, and I can’t wait to read my copy!
Issue III: hestia (hearth & home) is now available to download!
The digital download is completely free but if you wish to donate/pay as you feel, you can do so through the Donate tab.

Issue III: hestia (hearth & home) explores what home means to us all through poetry, prose, photography & artwork. Contributors reveal how it feels to belong, how we are defined by people and places and how Hestia’s legacy lives on.
Below, Home is the Air I Breathe, is the 2nd of my two contributions to this fabulous magazine
Home Is the Air I Breathe
welcome to our home
the house of rustic timber and stone
home is where my heart is now
and now I live here alone
but I am comfortable
wearing the same old shoes
walking her every mile
she’s in every corner stone
she’s in the marrow of my bones
we share the air I breathe
inhaling her gracious spirit
capturing her living essence
absorbing her love into my blood
pumping through my empty veins
cascading upon my open heart
caressing my solitary core
embracing our souls as one
Ivor Steven (c) Sept 2021
Featured Image credit; Maksym Harbar @ Unsplash
In response to Sadje’s Photo Prompt #Whatdoyousee – 101.
https://lifeafter50forwomen.com/2021/09/27/what-do-you-see-101-september-27-2021/
“Sentinel” (a Haiku)
Ancient clock-tower
Rural city sentinel
Over cobbled streets
Ivor Steven (c) Sept 2021
sometimes I wished
for love to linger longer
other times I wished
my soul was stronger
old love lingers on
within lullaby songs
is my heart right or wrong?
sometimes when the music plays on and on
I hear my angel humming along
Ivor Steven (c) Sept 2021
My poem today is actually made up of 3 different Haiku, however, as what often happens with my jumbled words and thoughts, the 3 stanzas seemed to fit together to form “one” poem …
Right or Wrong
As we scrape along
In life, we are often wrong
Before our swan song
Are we wrong or right?
Why do we let the moonlight
Disappear from sight?
Gloom enfolds the view
Gey clouds cover rainbow hues
Darkness stalks us too
Ivor Steven (c) Sept 2021
“After you have exhausted what there is in business, politics, conviviality, and so on – I have found that none of these finally satisfy, or permanently wear – what remains? Nature remains.” ― Walt Whitman
Intertwined
Why are we deaf and blind?
How can we be so silently unkind?
Nature is not our kitchen to be redesign
Mother Earth is our holy shrine
Our one and only protective rind
All we need, is her love intertwined
______________________________________
Featured Image: Forest Garden, Mt Dandenong, Victoria, by Greg Brave
______________________________________
Ivor Steven (c) Sept 2021
Bridges of ancient dreams spanned
On the wings of the bridled albatross
Flying over shallow lakes of delta moss
Bridges crossing from here to there
Above the worlds fractured rivers
Meandering from there to here
Connecting lonely bridal hands
Of people from far away lands
Bridges trekked by torn and splintered feet
And blooded by bomb blasted streets
Ivor Steven (c) Sept 2021
My poem today is made from a list of comments that I have left on fellow ‘Bloggers’ sites, and in order of stanza appearance these are the writers sites for you to visit ..
Bart – https://bartbarkerpoet.com/
Sadje – https://lifeafter50forwomen.com/
Punam – https://paeansunpluggedblog.wordpress.com/
Sadje – https://lifeafter50forwomen.com/
Annette – https://aikalandros.com/
Dwight – https://rothpoetry.wordpress.com/
Michelle~M – https://herwritinghaven.com/
Catxman – https://catxman.wordpress.com/
Mark – https://havocandconsequence.wordpress.com/
Cindy – https://uniquelyfitblog.com/
Carol – https://therapybits.com/
Cassa – https://flickerofthoughts.com/
Windwhisperer – https://wildwindwhisperer.wordpress.com/
Worlds Beyond Thoughts
Laws are merely guide lines
For the arrows of love to climb
Mirror mirror on the wall
Recalls our joys and falls
Behind every mask there is a weathered face
Behind every face old lines survive in place
Behind every place memories live with grace
Evil eyes lurk in veiled skies
The wisdom of native ancestors should be listened to
And not be lost to the modern ways this arrogant world
The way of modern progress
Is to leave nature shamefully undressed
Nature and renewal walk down the garden path hand in hand
I hear church bells ring
I see the mouses die
And the clouds always cry
Keep the cup full, turn the power on
And the answer will come
Like a big jigsaw puzzle
Not all the pieces will fit back
And overall the world will look the same
I cannot dwell on what has been
While I feel my blade of grass is alive and green
Above and beyond the crusty dirt
The universe is a symphonic concert
They say that the truth hurts
Beware of cold desserts
..
Ivor Steven (c) September 14th 2021
Featured Image Above: A photo by Derrick Knight, and a sincere thank you to Derrick for allowing me to use his wonderful photos along my poems. You can visit his site via this link >> https://derrickjknight.com/2021/09/05/greener-graveyard-grass/
The Path (a Senryu)
His tired empty heart
Travels a lonely path
In a dusty cart
Ivor Steven (c) Sept 2021