Tag: A Throwback Friday Poem

Throwback Friday, Wryly the Moon Sighs

I wrote today’s Throwback Friday poem in November 2022, however, all the attached images were taken at last night’s sunset.



Wryly the Moon Sighs



Looking up into the sky
There, beyond the clouds
The world’s twilight pilot
Our phlegmatic half-moon
Petitions our eyes


And spiritually
Wryly sighs at our demise
Then wisely
Waits for Sunset’s disguise











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132 Little Malop St, Geelong
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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





Ivor Steven (c) November 2024

Throwback Friday, An Empty Shell

** Please note: The featured image above was copied, with permission from Niki Flow’s; >> blog site.  https://under1000skies.org/

Today’s Throwback poem is from July 2019, six months after my third stroke, and stroke fatigue was still occurring regularly. Today, I’m feeling quite fatigued, but it has more to do with my hectic schedule lately …



An Empty Shell

I’m a broken stick
Hit by a tonne of bricks
I’ve stroke fatigue
Tiredness out of my league
The psyche says go
My body says no
Yesterday everything was fine
Today nothing is mine
Only rest and sleep
Not even a sneaky peep
They say, what’s wrong
I say, who’s playing my song
They say, you look ok
I say, I cannot stay
Read us your poem
No! I want to go home
Don’t spoil the show
I’m an empty shell, they do not know













All Books. Now Available At:

Creative Geelong MAY’D Shop,
Shop 15/Centrepoint Arcade
132 Little Malop St, Geelong
TRADING HOURS
Thursday-Saturday
11am-3pm



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





Ivor Steven (c) November 2024

Throwback Friday, A Universe Above the Sky


We were caught in the rain during our morning walkies, which prompted me to pick “A Universe Above the Sky” for today’s Throwback Friday Poem …


A Universe Above the Sky

Walking in the morning rain
Wearing water-logged boots
I am dodging millipedes
And hopping over the puddles
Along with the footpath crickets


I see a universe above the sky
As the liquid clouds
Drop their weight
Upon my empty hands
Filling them with verses
Of memories and rhymes











All Books. Now Available At:

Creative Geelong MAY’D Shop,
Shop 15/Centrepoint Arcade
132 Little Malop St, Geelong
TRADING HOURS
Thursday-Saturday
11am-3pm


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





Ivor Steven (c) October 2024

Throwback Friday, We Are Sour, But We Have the Power


Today’s Throwback Friday poem, “We Are Sour, But We Have the Power”, was written in June 2020 … It was a beautiful spring day today. Appropriately the attached Dragonfly images were taken during my nature walk this morning.



We Are Sour, But We Have the Power (Revised)

Out of the blue ocean, into the black sea
We continue to be wet behind our ears
And we are still burning bridges made out of coloured trees
Repeating the same old stories, from behind our shields and spears

What about looking at nature’s dragonflies and bees?
How do they live in harmony without fear and tears?
We are the carriers of humanity’s corrupt disease
Ignoring the world’s racist problems for too many years










All Books. Now Available At:

Creative Geelong MAY’D Shop,
Shop 15/Centrepoint Arcade
132 Little Malop St, Geelong
TRADING HOURS
Thursday-Saturday
11am-3pm



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





Ivor Steven (c) October 2024

Throwback Friday, A Banner Of Sunflowers

I planted sunflower seeds in my courtyard garden this afternoon, which prompted me to post today’s Throwback Friday poem, “A Banner of Sunflowers”. The poem originally stems from a Geelong Writers Ekphrastic poetry workshop, in May 2022, and this was my poetic response to Shirley Drayton’s creative piece of textile artwork “Golden Sunflowers”.
Please Note: the poem also appears in my book “Until Eyes Hear Sound”, in Chapter 6, War! Without Peace? on page 86.



A Banner Of Sunflowers

look!
up there
above the War’s
darkest clouds
there is a blue banner
embroidered with sunflowers
swaying
through a hole
in the eastern sky

bearing a message
of ‘Hello’
or is it ‘Goodbye’?
a sweeping reminder
from our Ancestors
“we feel your suffering and pain
from the merciless hard rain
blood-filled rivers and cratered plains
smoke-filled skylines and cracked windowpanes”

“however, we also know
beyond the broken horizon
the sunflower plants of hope
will germinate again
and future seeds for peace
will regenerate a new campaign“












All Books. Now Available At:

Creative Geelong MAY’D Shop,
Shop 15/Centrepoint Arcade
132 Little Malop St, Geelong
TRADING HOURS
Thursday-Saturday
11am-3pm


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





Ivor Steven (c) October 2024

Throwback Friday, Phantom-grams

Today’s Throwback Friday poem was written in May 2021, and appears in my 3rd book, ‘Until Eyes Hear Sound’, on page 50.






Phantom-grams




Holograms and Instagrams
How heavy are these grams?
LinkedIn and Facebook
How thin are their books?

Tumblr and Twitter
How can you weigh their feathers?
Priests and Politicians
How can you believe their repetitions?

Protest Songs and Subway Signs
Have you forgotten the messages of yesterday’s lines?












All Books. Now Available At:

Creative Geelong MAY’D Shop,
Shop 15/Centrepoint Arcade
132 Little Malop St, Geelong
TRADING HOURS
Thursday-Saturday
11am-3pm


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





Ivor Steven (c) September 2024

Throwback Friday, Who’s Left to Row the Boat

Today’s Throwback Friday poem was originally written in August 2018. The story is about the occurrence of my first stroke on the 20th of September, 2000.



Who’s Left to Row the Boat

The storms are too many to count
Emotional lows had weathered me out
Her journey with MS was a struggle
How much lower could our lives sink

After fourteen years of our battles, I suffered a Stroke
An ambulance came, my brain was in a boat
Floating out to sea, overboard and panic-stricken
I wasn’t swimming, barely awake, and drifting
I had fallen, nothing was working, and not talking
She’s crying, I’m sobbing, my heart is dying
And who’s left to row the boat, I’m thinking
I was jabbed with a needle and silently sleeping

I awoke a day later, in hospital, feeling wasted
My face was limp, mouth parched, was that death I tasted
My mind was active, I thought, where is she
I knew I was bad; the room was all blurry to me
Strong anxieties had set in, I needed to know
Nurses came to me, I pleaded, I wanted to go
“Help me to see her, just give my bed a tow
Please let me go, before I’m covered in snow”










All Books. Now Available At:

Creative Geelong MAY’D Shop,
Shop 15/Centrepoint Arcade
132 Little Malop St, Geelong
TRADING HOURS
Thursday-Saturday
11am-3pm


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





Ivor Steven (c) September 2024

Throwback Friday, Whispering Flowers

It was “our”48th Anniversary on the 10th of September, and my Throwback poem was written when I was recovering from 2nd and 3rd strokes, and of course, during that time I was not allowed to drive …


Whispering Flowers (Tullawalla, page 41)




Whispering Flowers

I went shopping this morning
To buy her flowers
For our anniversary day
A bus trip to the local florist
Then I boarded another bus to the cemetery
My first time on a bus carrying flowers
Bouquet in hand, on I hopped
You could’ve heard a pin drop
Over the silence, I heard solemn whispers
The men on the bus, courteously nodded
And the ladies knowingly smiled
Gratified, I dipped my cap in acknowledgement
Then I started to sense the day’s emotions arise
And with my honesty glowing, I felt proudly special










All Books. Now Available At:

Creative Geelong MAY’D Shop,
Shop 15/Centrepoint Arcade
132 Little Malop St, Geelong
TRADING HOURS
Thursday-Saturday
11am-3pm



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





Ivor Steven (c) September 2024

Throwback Friday, Bedroom Fireplace

Today’s Throwback poem was my first attempt at writing a ‘Pantun’ poem format. Originally written in October 2018

Pantun :
In its most basic form, the pantun consists of a quatrain which employs an abab rhyme scheme. A pantun is traditionally recited according to a fixed rhythm and as a rule of thumb, in order not to deviate from the rhythm, every line should contain between eight and 12 syllables.



Bedroom Fireplace

Oh wondrous lounge-room fireplace
Your winter-time sparkling crackle
Glows upon our old desire’s embrace
Reciting words of trust, beyond our burnt shackles

Oh wondrous bed-room fireplace
Your winter-time warming flame
Narrates tales of our revere and grace
Flickering words of love, beyond our given name












All Books. Now Available At:

Creative Geelong MAY’D Shop,
Shop 15/Centrepoint Arcade
132 Little Malop St, Geelong
TRADING HOURS
Thursday-Saturday
11am-3pm


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





Ivor Steven (c) September 2024

Throwback Friday, The Ancient Fern Survives

Today’s Throwback poem is from June 2022, and is also in my book Perceptions, page 37.

Featured Image Above: by Derrick Knight > https://derrickjknight.com/2022/06/10/rich-pickings/

The Images below: are from my courtyard ..





The Ancient Fern Survives



Selfish, unopened minds remain numbed
False eyelashes are heavy and closed
Botoxed lips are silent and sealed
And elephant ears have been pegged out of sight



But there under our careless feet
The earth’s ferns have agelessly survived
Three hundred and sixty million years
Without changing the appearance of their golden leaves
That timelessly regenerate themselves
By naturally releasing their fertilising spores











All Books. Now Available At:

Creative Geelong MAY’D Shop,
Shop 15/Centrepoint Arcade
132 Little Malop St, Geelong
TRADING HOURS
Thursday-Saturday
11am-3pm


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





Ivor Steven (c) August 2024