Tag: Life

From the Mountains to the Sea

A Picnic in the Rocky’s

Leaving Salmon Arm

On the outskirts of Vancouver heading towards the Ferry

The ferry from Vancouver to Sidney (Vancouver Island)

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From the Mountains to the Sea

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I am gradually drifting down
From out of the mountains smoky shroud
Toward the seaside playground
To rejoin a welcoming crowd

Where around the magical island
There will be more stories unfold
As time quickly filters through my hand
But these precious moments will be all molded
Into poetic lines, written in charcoal and gold

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Ivor Steven (c) Sept 2025

Up Among the Embers

The smoky Rocky’s on the way back to Vancouver, and Frankie waiting at the front door for my sister-in-law to come from work.

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Up Among the Embers

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Climbing higher and higher
Riser after blackened riser
Hovering above the forest fire
In the middle of this smoky mire

Here, beside her charred pyre
Listening to her hallelujah choir

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Ivor Steven (c) Sept 2025

Throwback Friday, Quietly I Exist

Today’s Throwback Friday Poem appears in my revised edition of “Tullawalla”, July 2022, and was originally written as a travel log piece about my overseas journey to, America, Philadelphia, in May 2019.

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Quietly I Exist

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I’m writing words from the edge of time

And pondering my life’s lack of rhyme

Thinking every moment is an ironic crime

And quietly, I exist only in mime

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Life is a mountain of ups and downs

Sharp thorns and slippery crowns

For me, every moment is a good day

Behind me, I leave yesterday

And today I’ll by-pass midday

On my way to bathing in tomorrow’s sun-rays

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We are not here to control nature

But we are responsible for her future

I don’t think humans are meant to be

Poisoning the sea with plastic and mercury

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I cannot be the king of this stagnant world

But I am free as my wings unfurled

My eyes have been opened again

To reveal the sky, sunshine and rain

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Now I see beyond every yellow door

There was once an original world

So, I’ll turn the latch to discover more

And give realities of life a whirl

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Ivor Steven (c) Sept 2025

Fallen Ancestors

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Fallen Ancestors

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Above
I saw time drift across the sky
Below
I heard a grey waterlogged tree cry
“Is this the graveyard where my
fallen ancestors have been left to die”

There
“Against the sea wall’s merciless granite crown
surrounded by cold water crashing around
Please
“Take my hand, guide me down
so I can cover them with my green nightgown

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Ivor Steven (c) Sept 2025

Royal Roads University, Hatley Park Gardens

Featured Image: Ivor in front of the iconic Hatley Castle (1908)

Cousin Penny and her husband Dave

Pea Hen and a duck on the pond

Above and below images are from the rose garden

The fernery garden

The Japanese garden and pond

Above; The Italian garden area

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Ivor Steven (c) Sept 2nd 2025

Throwback Friday, Odds and Sods, Spots and Blots

Today’s Throwback Friday poem is an odd collection of anecdotes from my hospital bed, written in December 2018. After I had just suffered a ‘minor’ stroke, and these were the jumbled thoughts that were tumbling out of my tired and confused mind …



Odds and Sods, Spots and Blots

Lazy Bones

Cordless phones
Garden gnomes
Overhead drones
Windowless homes
Creaks and moans
Lazy bones

Pain

Pain is like the rain
It comes and goes
Heavy and light

A Lie

It’s a lie that I don’t cry
It’s a lie that I passed you by
It’s a lie that I never tried
It’s a lie that I’ll never die

Mirror

Mirror, mirror, on the wall
You showed me how to stand tall
Again, it’s time for your call

Judge 

I’m neither a judge
Nor a dealer in sludge
I’d rather eat some fudge
And give my side of life a nudge

Even Though

Love is all above thee
Love is a blanket of autumn leaves
Love showers us with glee
Love is everywhere, to feel and see







Ivor Stven May 2025

“Dusty Photos”, 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 “Dusty Photos” 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/dusty-photos/







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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 © May 2025

Throwback Friday, Did Your Heart Stop Too?

Thirteen years ago today, it was the “Time” that I made a “heart-stopping decision”


Did Your Heart Stop Too?

Did you cry too?
When the doctors told you
She was not going to recover

Did they ask you too?
About what you already knew
It was time
To flick the switch
And dim her light

Did your heart stop, too?
Knowing
You had emptied her shoes

Did you sleep there too?
During those infinite days of blue
Softly holding her hand
And not letting go

Did you weep too?
Blankly alone
In her full room
Waiting
For her last silent breath








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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 © April 2025