Category: Poems

“I Remember”, is in this week’s Coffee House Writers Magazine edition.

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.

  1. Lines: 15 lines in total.
  2. Stanzas:
    • First stanza: 5 lines (quintet)
    • Second stanza: 4 lines (quatrain)
    • Third stanza: 6 lines (sestet)
  3. Refrain: The first few words or the opening phrase of the first line are repeated as the last line of the second and third stanzas.
  4. Rhyme Scheme: AABBA AABR AABBAR (where “R” is the refrain).






Ivor Steven (c) July 2025

Let the Rivers Flow (a Combined Poem)


Today’s poem is one of my verses made up of comments I posted on some of my fellow WordPress writers’ articles during the month … In stanza order, they are:
* Paul, The Moment – a poem by Paul Vincent Cannon | parallax 
* Carol, Some people say I’m off my trolley – Therapy Bits
* David, The shape, or: Letting go – The Skeptic’s Kaddish 🇮🇱 
* David, https://skepticskaddish.com/2025/06/27/mouthfuls-of-silence-or-sign-language/






Let the Rivers Flow (a Combined Poem)


The tides of time are forever changing 
Going beyond our depth can be frightening 
But testing the unknown waters can be rewarding

We are all off our trolley
We all like our Lollies
We all forget the brolly
Life is a hectic folly
So, best we stay jolly
And always chat to Polly

If things don’t change
Things will remain the same
Let the cascades fall
May the rivers always flow
Forever changing our lives
With the current’s undertow  

Sometimes I wonder
If I am drowning in the sound
Of words that are on the tip of my tongue
And their lifeline has melted
Into the silent recesses of my mind 





Ivor Steven (c) June 2025

Water and Sand


Over at Weekly Prompts, it’s the last weekend of the month, and it’s time for the One Day Prompt. To visit their fabulous site, please click on >> Here


Water and Sand

I am a nomadic island
A minute rock of water and sand
An unstable molecular lotion
In the universe’s vast ocean

I am one unsinkable living gland
At the mercy of nature’s timeless hands





Ivor Steven (c) June 2025

Autumn Leaves and Bees Knees





Autumn Leaves and Bees Knees

Deep among the forest’s magical trees
Where the rowdy snails do as they please
There is a secret garden for frolicking fairies
Their cabbage patch is made from layers
Of interwoven autumn leaves and bee’s knees
Spread upon leftover leprechaun sleeves

Here, the sprites flit in on the breeze
With an occasional wheeze and sneeze
Sometimes the bold winter freeze
Gives them an overfriendly squeeze
And you’ll hear the fairies squeal in Sinhalese





Ivor Steven (c) June 2025

Throwback Friday, Five Shades of Grey

Here in Geelong we have been experiencing a wintry blast over the last few days, so appropriately I have chosen “Five Shades of Grey” for my Throwback Friday poem. I originally wrote the poem in April 2019




Five Shades of Grey

Daylight turns into night
Ravens scatter in mid-flight
Dark clouds overlay
Five shades of grey
Thor’s hammer roars
His spark of fire, soar
Fiercely, a flaming bolt strikes
Piercing frightened psyches






Ivor Steven (c) March 2021

Life, Beyond the Lines


Today’s poem is in response to Sadje’s Photo Prompt >> What do you see # 294- 23 June, 2025 – – https://lifeafter50forwomen.com/2025/06/23/what-do-you-see-294-23-june-2025/


My poem can be interpreted into both of Sadje’s prompt images.



Life, Beyond the Lines


Life’s a continual battle
but the battle lines
are there to be crossed

Life’s wondrous museum
inspires me to keep exploring
the universe’s grand Colosseum



 




Ivor Steven © June 2025

My iPad Cushion





My iPad Cushion


In the mornings
I like to lie in bed
And use my iPad
I sit up with pillows
Behind my back
And I have a rolled-up white towel
That I use as an iPad cushion
And Frankie usually sleeps on my feet

However, on this cold winter morning
Frankie decided to snuggle up closer
Which enabled me to rest the iPad
On his white, fluffy head
Without even a blink of an eye lid
He was simply happy to be near me





Ivor Steven © June 2025

A Pretty Poet Fairy


Above, the pretty poet fairy and my neighbouring stallholder, Meagan





A Pretty Poet Fairy

We all believe in the magical world of fairies
And we all know about
The mischievous toadstool fairies
And the benevolent tooth fairies
Naiads and Nymphs are nature’s
Wondrous water-bound fairies
And I personally chat to the Dryads
Our wise and protective tree fairies

Today, at the Makers Market
I was lucky enough
To meet a pretty poet fairy
She was curiously fascinated
By my yellow ‘Lucky-dip’ bucket
“Dig deep, and take a poem home”

“May I?” she politely asked
“You are more than welcome”
She gently grabbed a lucky envelope
and sweetly grinned
“May I take one for my sister”
“Yes, of course”
“Oh, I have a little sister too!
Amused, I said, “No worries”
“And my dad likes poetry too!”
“That’s lovely, you must have a wonderful dad”
Her enchanting smile made my day






Ivor Steven (c) June 2025

Redefining My Lines




Redefining My Lines



I was a brittle piece of old oak
After suffering my three strokes
Which had left me in a dim coal mine
Where I was a fish out of water
Left hanging on the line
To shudder and totter

Recovery was a gradual incline
That felt like a slippery alpine
But I kept on thinking
Everything would be fine
If I never stopped dreaming
Of redefining myself, on cloud nine

In my adaptable mind
I have thrown myself a new lifeline
Via a bundle of woolly Canadian twine
And it is now my time
To enjoy a new bed of roses and wine





Ivor Steven (c) June 2025