Photos – Ivor.Plumber/Poet

“Between the Moon and Clouds” is up at Spillwords Magazine

Only posted on my site on June 1st, submitted the next day, and published yesterday — a beautifully swift and heartening response from Spillwords.

I’m absolutely ecstatic to share that my poem “Between the Moon and Clouds” has been accepted and published in Spillwords Magazine this week. My heartfelt thanks to editor Dagmara for selecting my piece — her support means the world.

You can read the poem on Spillwords by clicking the link below, and if you feel moved to, you’re welcome to leave a 💗 for the article:

>> https://spillwords.com/between-the-moon-and-clouds/

Please note: the featured image above was kindly supplied by Spillwords Press.

Between the Moon and Clouds

written by: Ivor Steven

They say the world is changing,
but the moon cannot stop frowning,
while nature is unerringly hurting,
beneath our fettered feet.

Between the worried moon
and the settling clouds,
I perceive a loud rumbling sigh
from beyond the deep blue sky.

In one ferocious breath, Thor decries,
“Beware of the ground’s ringleader’s lies
about the Earth’s visible demise,
and hear the crust’s cries
with your own eyes.

Ivor Steven

Ivor Steven was formerly an Industrial Chemist, then a Plumber, now retired. He has had numerous poems published in anthologies and online magazines. He has 2 self-published books, “Tullawalla” and “Perceptions,” and is an active member of the Geelong Writers Inc. (Australia) and an appointed writer for “Coffee House Writers” magazine (USA).

Just days after first sharing these thoughts on June 1st — born in that quiet space between day and night — Spillwords welcomed the poem into their pages with a wonderfully swift response

Ivor Steven © June 2026

Coffee House Writers Magazine features my new poem, “Climbing Time.”

Featured Image Above: The image is a photomontage of a dim, muted horizon, and a crow flying above the horizon (which is the glued-on piece)

Hello, dear readers and followers. I contribute to Coffee House Writers magazine (USA) every second week, and I’m delighted to share that my latest poem, “Climbing Time,” appears in the new issue. You can read it by following the link below.
>> Climbing Time – Coffee House Writers

The day’s soft edges — a wavering line, a lingering bird, a fallen quill — all found their way into the poem.

Somewhere beneath the melody, the climb keeps unfolding.

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 account,
for the Book, plus Postage.

Ivor Steven © June 2026

Moon Talk

It’s been a week of wild weather and wilder WordPress moments, but today the moon slipped through the clouds with a smile, reminding me that even the sky resets itself.

Over at Weekly Prompts. The monthly Colour Challenge is, Blue. To visit their fabulous site, please click on >> Here

Moon Talk

G’day everyone.
After some wet, windy, wintry days
and a worrying and wearisome
WordPress app week,
it was a relief to see the moon’s glowing face.

I looked above the tranquil trees
toward the clearing, cottony clouds
and there, at last, I saw the moon’s
handsome, happy face —
and finally we could resume
our “Happiness” conversation
after resolving the week’s
glitched frustrations and consternations
(contaminations… contradictions… take your pick).

And as the moon drifts on and the music finds its rhythm, I follow along — lighter now, and finally in step again

Ivor Steven © June 2026

Haiku for Soulmates in the Museum of Modern Japanese Literature

Haiku from around the world now resting in Japan’s premier literary museum — a milestone worth celebrating.

This morning brought extraordinary news from Gabriela Marie Milton of Literary Revelations Press — news worth celebrating.
Learn more about Literary Revelations Press: >> https://literaryrevelations.com

The Museum of Modern Japanese Literature in Tokyo has officially accepted four Literary Revelations anthologies into its permanent collection:

Petals of Haiku
Tranquility: An Anthology of Haiku
Haiku and Tanka: Lull, Harmony and Power of Japanese Art
Haiku for Soulmates

Thanks to a thoughtful presentation by Literary Revelations’ Artist in Residence, Hikari, the museum recognised the depth and authenticity of these global haiku voices. Their decision reflects a growing appreciation for international expressions of Japanese poetic forms.

For Gabriela, for Hikari, and for every contributor, this is a moment of genuine pride. These books will now rest in Japan’s premier literary institution — preserved for future scholars, poets, and readers.

As a contributor to both Tranquility and Haiku for Soulmates, I’m deeply honoured to be part of this moment.

Tranquility: An Anthology of Haiku

Let the music settle softly over the moment — a quiet echo of everything worth celebrating.

Ivor Steven © June 2026

Throwback Friday, The Universe Beyond My Wardrobe’s Doors

This poem was penned in May 2024 and quietly tucked away. Rediscovering it today felt like stepping back into the room where it began, so I’ve gently revised it for my Throwback Friday reflection.

The Universe Beyond My Wardrobe’s Doors (Revised)

I live in a small, compact villa.
My abode is comfortable and cozy.
The bedroom doubles up
as my writer’s studio and library.

The wardrobe’s doors are near the end of my bed.
On the doors, I hang a calendar
and a special photo of me and Carole
taken for our 25th anniversary

I gaze at the calendar and ponder.
The appointments are in black,
important dates are marked in red,
and my poetry events are scribbled in blue.

The calendar has many blank squares —
the days I spend writing.
I write to her about love and coping.
I write for myself, about life and nature.

I write for everyone who reads my poems.
I write my thoughts about humanity’s existence
within the universe and the great beyond.
I write words, “Until Eyes Hear Sound.”

As the room opens into the universe once more, here’s a song to travel with — much like Melanie’s lovely old “Look What They’ve Done to My Song, Ma,” carrying my memories back into the light.

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 account,
for the Book, plus Postage.

Ivor Steven © June 2026

Shangri La, Volume 20, Life’s Missing Teacher

FREE PDF COPY >>> Links Below

Hello, dear readers and followers. As you may know, I stopped producing my “Tullawalla Booklets” at #31 because that was the house number of our family’s Tullawalla Homestead.
Yet the booklet format is a superb way for me to catalogue the vast number of poems I produce, and as the saying goes, “I Am Turning Another Page”. Here I have begun a new series of poem booklets, called “Shangri La”, the name of my little Villa, and it is my piece of “earthly paradise, a retreat from the pressures of modern civilization”.
I now have “2354” poems gathered across these booklets
(On my bookshelf, sits “The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson, with 1775 poems — when I first began writing, I never imagined I would one day surpass that number.)

“Like all my booklets, this one is here to be read at your leisure — no rush, no expectation, just an open page waiting when you are.”

Click >> Here, for the link to your FREE: PDF Copy of “Shangri La, Volume 20, Life’s Missing Teacher.”

OR … Shangri La, Volume 20, Life’s Missing Teacher.pdf

Life’s Missing Teacher

I never found a teacher,
who taught me how to grieve.

The unforeseen creature
was difficult to perceive.

After unplugging her extension cord,
time was always near.

While wandering toward
the edge of life’s weathered pier.

In the spaces grief never taught me to navigate, Cohen’s song becomes a guide.

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 account,
for the Book, plus Postage.

The Forest, a Fantasy Land

The Little Cloud Studio window display at the Creative Geelong Makers Hub stirred a memory of Emily Dickinson’s quiet devotion to nature — this piece is my own small letter back to the world, written from a forest of imagination.

“This is my letter to the World
That never wrote to Me —
The simple News that Nature told —
With tender Majesty, Her Message is committed
To Hands I cannot see —
For love of Her — Sweet — countrymen —
Judge tenderly — of Me.”

Emily Dickinson

The Forest, a Fantasy Land

Come join me in the forest’s fantasy land;
I know of a picture-perfect place
where the dappled sunlight
silently filters through the trees.

There’s a picnic table built for two.
I’ll bring a food hamper
and Emily Dickerson’s
magical book of poems.

Within the bower’s peace and quiet,
if you listen closely, nature’s gentle breeze
softly rustles through the ferns and leaves;
and then you’ll hear the green toadstools
from the forest floor’s mossy logs
humming a familiar tune.

Today’s music drifts from the heart of the forest — Enya’s “The Memory of the Trees.”

Monday, June 1st 2026

After weeks of mild, forgiving autumn days, winter arrived this morning without ceremony — a cool breath through the trees, a dimming of the sun, and the first hint of rain settling over the café windows.

So there we were, winter at our shoulders and coffee in hand, watching the day change

And for Sadje’s,
What do you see # 343- June 1, 2026
>> What do you see # 343- June 1, 2026 – Keep it alive

Monday, June 1st 2026

It’s the first day of winter.
Our weather-weary sun
is diminishing and hiding
behind our shady evergreen trees
and the dark, rainy clouds.

We’re cold, but safely sheltering
at the cosy Box Office Cafe
and enjoying our coffee and treats.
Frankie is snuggling up beside me,
and despite the damp atmosphere,
my trusty old pencil still works,
no matter what the prevailing conditions.

A low ember of winter, still burning somewhere inside.

Between the Moon and Clouds

Twilight gathered around me, the moon above and the land below — and this mural, a reminder of the ancient, living connection our First Nations people hold with Country.

Between the Moon
and Clouds

They say the world is changing,
but the moon cannot stop frowning,
while nature is unerringly hurting,
beneath our fettered feet.

Between the worried moon
and the settling clouds,
I perceive a loud rumbling sigh
from beyond the deep blue sky.

In one ferocious breath, Thor decries,
“Beware of the ground’s ringleader’s lies
about the Earth’s visible demise,
and hear the crust’s cries
with your own eyes.”

In the silence between day and night, the sky held its breath, and I paused on earth’s shimmering crust, letting the music rise where words could not.

Stamped and Dispatched

Gigi, wrote these words

“all of those things
divide us
separate us
they are labels
and we are not merchandise”

Below, is my poetic reply

Gigi >> This is what is done to all of us… | Rethinking Life

Stamped and Dispatched

once upon a time
a poet without rhyme
looked up from the waiting line —
the sky whispered its warning:
you were never meant to wear a label,
nor born to be one‑of‑a‑kind