While the rainstorm moves on, the sky remembers only light. Beneath a rain-washed evening sky, golden sunlight broke through the clouds and illuminated the horizon. Nature seemed content to begin again.
At the End of Day (a Haiku)
Following the rain
Nature is smiling again
She feels not our pain
The rainstorm moved on, the sky remembered only light, and this song seemed a fitting companion to the evening.
Ivor Steven © October 2026
Some poems arrive unexpectedly. This one began with a coffee, a rainy Sunday, and a flock of local ibis flying low beneath lingering clouds. As I watched their steadfast progress through the weather, I found myself reflecting on the grace of creatures that simply continue on their way, unfazed by conditions that might send the rest of us searching for shelter.
Unfazed
Flying low under the radar
below the lingering, languid clouds
a flock of local ibis is gracefully gliding
under the stuporous shroud
Unfazed by the sun’s faded gaze
and the daytime moon’s invisible luna blaise
the birds remain elegantly close-knit
and cooperatively proud.
Amazed, watching from this cosy café
where warmth and weather meet as one,
I envy their impassive passage,
those steadfast, unbending birds
through the world’s relentless rain.
Sometimes the sky, the birds, and the music all arrive on the same day. For me, this piece now belongs to the birds and the weather.
Ivor Steven © October 2026
Featured Image Above: Originally my blurry photo, which was then sharpened and enhanced by Copilot
High above the clouds, a lone dragonfly pauses to contemplate a world seemingly intent on creating its own troubles. Sometimes a fortunate photograph becomes a poem. In this case, a blurred dragonfly inspired an unsettling phrase and the lines that followed.
Evil Nuclei
I’m a lone dragonfly
in a vast, bedazzling sky
wondering why
there are no other guys
up here passing by.
Wait, down there,
between Dubai and Versailles,
I see a swarm of evil nuclei
flying toward the forests of Paraguay,
in search of a shady alibi.
As the dragonfly drifts across a bedazzling sky, Moby’s Porcelain lingers among the clouds.
Ivor Steven © October 2026
Under a cloudless spring sky, the afternoon sun burnished every wing and feather with a brilliant sheen. Their restless movements through sun, shade, and breeze inspired the following poem, drafted with an HB pencil on a very warm afternoon at the café.
Fervid Feathers
The burnished birds
have warily bathed enough
under spring’s hot midday sun.
Their reflective, fervid feathers
shimmer like sails
of sleek black satin.
Then, frantically, the sun-polished birds
follow the flighty dragonflies and bees
into the succoring shady trees.
Refreshing their fervid feathers
in the afternoon’s soothing
sea breeze.
As the afternoon heat fades into a soothing sea breeze, here is a charming little song to accompany today’s feathered observations, and one that may be new to some readers.
Ivor Steven © October 2026
Quote: “Why do the war’s doors stay closed to friendly paws?” 🐾 … Frankie 🐶
Frankie wrote this poem on October 21st, 2024. In just a few lines, he imagines a peaceful world with an open door, an earthen floor, and a green décor. It is also a heartfelt plea that humanity stops applauding war’s repeated appearances.
Before the poem, here is Matisyahu’s inspiring “One Day”.
Please! No More Encores (Written by Frankie)
When war is over
My door will stay open
The floor is earthen
My decor is green
I adore the theme
Please!
No more encores
I abhor
The vapour
Of war
Frankie asks for no more encores. The music that follows reflects on why they keep returning, disguised and renamed, as though each generation must learn the same lesson again.
.
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.
Ivor Steven © October 2026
Yesterday, Geelong Cereal published the third part of my dragon series, My Dragon, The Tetralogy: Part 3, My Dragon – Can He Fly.
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 3. My Dragon, Can He Fly
Below is the image of the poem as it appeared in the magazine.
As I finished Part 3 of my dragon’s journey, this song seemed to capture his spirit perfectly. A reminder that before we learn whether we can fly, we first need the courage to look toward the sky.
Ivor Steven © October 2026
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
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
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
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
