Category: Published Poem

Tullawalla


Dedication


This book is dedicated to my late wife Carole



Spiralling


I look

upwards

there

on spiralling

warm air

a white petal

fluttering

like a dove

between

here and there

hovering

on a cloud of love

there

waving

from above

my angel

forever

faithful


I wave

“oh, my love,

aren’t you tired yet?”







Ivor Steven (c) August 2022

Tullawalla, Republished by Jaymah Press

I am ecstatic to announce that the self-published version of my Book “Tullawalla” will be available on September 10th … thank you to my editor/publisher, Judy of Jaymah Press (a local establishment) for accepting to take on my project.
>> https://www.jaymahpress.com.au/


Jaymah Press

COMING SOON! 10 SEPTEMBER 2022

Tullawalla A Meeting Place Where My Empty Hands Are Full of Memories and Rhymes
Poetry by Ivor Steven. Artwork by Kerri Costello

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) August 15th 2022

A Welcoming Roar, is up at Coffee House Writers Magazine

Hello dear readers and followers, I now write for “Coffee House Writers” magazine on a fortnightly basis, and my poem“A Weloming Roar”, is in this week’s edition of Coffee House Writers Magazine. … please click on the link below to read my poem, at Coffee House Writers.
>> https://coffeehousewriters.com/a-welcoming-roar/




Ivor Steven (c) August 2022

Day One (a Repost)

A poem from early in year, while I am here laid up in bed with a sore back


Day One

Before Day One

I wished upon a star
That the milk-bar
Was not too far away
My life’s bread was crumbling
My weathered hands were funmbling
Witnessing the last supper was humbling

Day One

There, beyond the darkness
Out in the universe
From a million light-years away
Under an alien’s microscopic frame
We would all look the same

After Day One

I wished for the dust to settle
Then waited for rusted gunmetal
To mature into household kettles
Whistling hallelujah to new sunflower petals







Ivor Steven (c) August 2022









This Lost Shadow, A “10” Year Celebration

Ten years ago my poem ‘This Lost Shadow‘ was accepted and published in the Literary Anthology, “Melpomene” . The poem was the first piece of mine to appear in a Published Book, and I was exceptionally proud to have my name in the authors list, along side the famous poets, Charles Baudelaire, Edgar Allan Poe, Emily Dickinson, William Blake, and Paul Verlaine … Below, I have scanned my poem ‘This Lost Shadow’ directly from my copy of the book.

Featured Photo Above: Taken by Derrick Knight > derrickjknight – Ramblings

Melpomene

Gwendolyn Taunton (Editor)

Melpomene is a collection of poetry, prose and short fiction named after the Greek Muse of Tragedy. The central theme of the anthology is the beauty found in sorrow and the darker sides of human nature, drawing on literary traditions such as the ‘Damned Poets’, the Decadent Movement, Symbolism/Surrealism and the Fin de si cle. Melpomene is broken into four sections: Liber Veneficium (Book of Magic), Liber Maeroris (Book of Sorrow), Liber Fatum (Book of Fate), and Liber Mortuorum (Book of Death). Each section contains both new and classic literature dealing with these themes. Authors in this volume include Charles Baudelaire, Paul Verlaine, William Blake, Edgar Allan Poe, Emily Dickinson, Gwendolyn Taunton, Azsacra Zarathustra, Math Jones, Bernardo Sena, J. Karl Bogartte, C. B. Liddell, James WF Roberts, Christopher Pankhurst, H. A. Cledones, Tamas Nagyatadi Horvath, L. Alexander Carle, Bill Noble, Marg Howlet, Ivor Steven and Gene Banyard. Containing works both old and new, Melpomene offers a prime selection of works on the melancholic side of existence, the transformational beauty of the esoteric, occult secrets hidden in verse, sorrow, doom and the inevitable grasp of death. Melpomene will haunt the reader with a dark and unearthly beauty that is both forbidden and forlorn…







Ivor Steven (c) July 2022

Today, Beside the Sea. is up at Coffee House Writers magazine.

Hello dear readers and followers, I now write for “Coffee House Writers” magazine on a fortnightly basis, and my poem“Today, Beside the Sea”, is in this weeks edition of Coffee House Writers Magazine. … please click on the link below to read my poem, at Coffee House Writers >> 
https://coffeehousewriters.com/today-beside-the-sea/







Ivor Steven (c) July 2022

Climbing a Rabbit Proof Fence, Published in the Geelong Writers Inc. Anomaly Street: Chapbook, Volume 1

Last night I attended the Geelong Writers Inc. monthly dinner/get together, which also featured the Book Launch of their new bi-annual Chapbook, Anomaly Street, and if you read the photo/scans attached below, you will understand my excitement of being selected in this outstanding collection of poetry with a difference, that creates jolts for flatlined minds ..

This is how my poem appeared in the Chapbook









Ivor Steven  © July 2022

Dreaming in a Dream & Rumblings, are in the March Issue of Positive Words Magazine

I am pleased and proud to announce that 2 of my poems, “Dreaming in a Dream (a Tanka)” & “Rumblings (a Senryu)” are published in the June Issue, Positive Words Magazine, and thank you to the Editor, Sandra, for selecting my poems… For further information about this fabulous Australian magazine, visit their site via this link > https://positivewordsmagazine.wordpress.com/
Attached below, I have scanned the poems directly from my copy of the Magazine.








Ivor Steven (c) June 2022

Social Justice Inks: Anthology of Poetry 

I feel honoured to have three pieces published in Lisa Tomey’s new Anthology, Social Justice Links. And congratulations to Lisa Tomey for this project. This is a raw and honest poetic view to the many aspects of social injustice in our world.

It takes courage to publish a book like this and I applaud Lisa Tomey for doing so! Congratulations Lisa and to all the writers/contributors!

My three poems in the Anthology are;
– A Hard Rain A’Gonna Fall on Polar Bears
– Burnt at the Cross
– That Nightly Sound
And the book is available for purchase via these Links
>> Lulu Link 
>> Amazon Link  

Social Justice Inks is about expression of social justice concerns and about working through these concerns, seeking answers is an ongoing process. We asked poets to offer their creative expressions about Social Justice and what they think about how to solve social problems in the world.

This collection is from poets around the world, offering their points of view about Social Justice. It has brought chill bumps to rise, blood to boil, hearts to beat, and hope to ring true.

It has often been said that awareness is the key from apathy to action. The writers offer such a strong awareness from so many perspectives. What will be interesting to hear is how the reader is affected and if the words stimulate change.

Last, we cannot express deeply enough the appreciation for all these talented individuals who have come together to establish a community for social awareness.

About the Artist & Cover Art
It has been a delight to work with Kay Payne as we developed a concept for the cover art. What I was looking for is something to show the positive spirit and power of nature. This evolved to the wreath of unity decorated with the spirit animals which came to mind. It is by no means exhaustive but was designed to show the power of the spirit. This comes from my personal belief that with unity we have strength and with strength and spirit we have power. May we always use that power to make positive changes in this world.

Kay Payne resides in Alabama with a paintbrush in one hand and a hammer in the other. She helps her beloved with his handyman work, while raising their blended family, full of love and sweet tea.



A Hard Rain A’Gonna Fall on Polar Bears



The foreigners have quietly landed

Wood from our trees has all been sanded

We’re a country without doors

Surrounded by golden shores

The openings are vast

The alien’s time is here at last

I cannot stop them, nor can you

If it be their will

Then, let it be

Join them, do not flee

We’ll all be hand in hand

To become the promised land

So let us be great again

Do not worry about the hard rain

Do not consider the faded sunlight

Forget about the rainstorm tonight

Who cares about Polar Bear’s with no ice?

World leaders say “Enjoy now, no matter the price”








Ivor Steven (c) May 2022