Heavy rain outside,
your door is closed.
He is waiting out there,
soaked in the storm, counting time.
You’d open the door
and welcome him.
You’d wipe his head and face
with your fingers of love.
And when you unbutton his shirt,
you’d notice—
he is fragile from inside,
his little heart broken into tiny pieces.
I never wished to be the fire
That found a home already weary.
I only carried the warmth I knew,
Never knowing it would become your ruin.
If I had seen those fragile walls,
The cracks hidden beneath your smile,
I would have held my flames with trembling hands,
Afraid to turn another memory into ash.
You say your home no longer stands,
That every corner became dust.
Yet ashes are only what remain
When something once burned brightly.
I cannot gather every broken brick,
Nor erase the scars my heat has left.
But if there is one prayer I still whisper,
It is that another sunrise—not my fire—
Will one day teach your heart
How to become a home again.
And if, in another lifetime,
We meet before the flames are lit,
May I learn to be a lantern instead of a wildfire.
a free fervent feel
kindled by an unseen light~
friend that makes us heal
a fragile thread spun
holds the unknown, whispers hope~
trust what not yet won.
sunlight through the clouds,
a sudden warmth upon the face~
winds dispel the shrouds.
doubt's chill breeze may blow,
testing the weave, stretching out~
still, the string does glow
night stollers alone
guided by a distant glow~
belief in unknown
seeds beneath the soil
unseen growth, a patient wait~
life shines through one`s toil
when all seems vanished
when the path is lost to sigh~
guiding faith cherished
a gentle whisper,
across the vast and silent space~
trust turning crisper.
more than simple verse
a living, breathing essence~
holds the universe.
When Fragile Blossoms Fall,
Gentle winds stir the leaves and summer calls
Now, when morning dew settles on the lawn.
We meet again, when fragile blossoms fall,
From this; a promise of a future drawn.
On your return, hope in new seasons cast
When the blackbird’s song breaks the silent dawn
And the long winter of your absence passed,
From your loss, this new summer’s promise born.
If your stay be shorter than a winter’s day,
And the slow passing hours no comfort give,
Leave, let me in memory’s cavern’s stay
And forlorn hope in deep labyrinths live.
Stay; let old fading memory depart,
Let bright hope then in future seasons start.
Barry Stebbings
July 2026
Fragile is the pedestal upon which she stands,
like sand through an hourglass,
slipping through cold hands.
It brings great joy as it fills our hearts and fills the air,
when it slips into darkness
it brings great despair.
It bears a gentle touch, leaving fond impressions,
yet can break a heart
when turned into obsessions.
Can make just one kiss the warmest of desire,
Or rip a soul to shreds
and burn it up with fire.
Brings showers of affection that wash tears away,
or drown a heart in sorrow,
while it goes astray.
Wraps a body in passion, languishingly sweet,
then slaps you and pulls the rug
from under your feet.
It can be so beautiful, the sweetest of dreams,
then turn into a nightmare
of hateful dark schemes.
When you say those three words you’re letting down your guard,
followed by good-bye,
after you’ve fallen so hard.
Fragile are the wings upon which a heart takes flight.
Yet, if it's for real...
Love will shine forever bright.
The heart is so fragile when shattered it completely drains a person of the life they once had
I speak a truth too quiet to hear
And call that honesty in my fear
To show my scars upon my face
The terror sets my heart to race
Bare my soul my true inner man
A most fragile and terrible plan
So I hold my cursed sins close
And pray you’ll love the lying ghost
Shall every dawn a gentle sculptor be,
That moulds the clay of thought with softest art?
As yonder flower, bathed in crystal sea.
Doth catch the light and teach the drooping heart.
From golden vein where dewdrops slowly trace
Their shinning path along the petal's curve ,
So doth the mind, in quiet, sacred space,
Absorb the strength that daily trials serve.
Teach it to trust the root that grips the earth,
Though tempests rage and shadows cloak the sky;
For in the bloom that drinks the morning's birth,
Lies power born where fragile droplets lie.
Thus shape thy soul as dawn's own hand designs--
Believe thine own bright strength , and claim what shines.
The statesman speaks of solid ground,
With golden words and noble sound.
But note the floor on which he stands:
It's made of glass and shifting sands.
One honest puff, one tiny stone,
And down will crash the heavy throne.
Explosions tear the midnight sky apart,
Mothers clutch their children , terror in their heart.
Washington thunders, "We own the dark!"
Tehran vows vengeance with a funeral spark.
Blood rains on ancient streets of stone,
Fathers vanish, leaving empty thrones.
Eagles scream while black flags are flown,
Yet both titans tremble when the reaper's blade is shown.
Ceasefire! they bellow through smoke and flame,
Victors' lies mask the widows' endless pain .
"Glory eternal!" both leaders claim.
While orphans whisper broken prayers in vain.
Oil burns black like souls turned to ash,
Markets laugh as the funeral pyres flash.
" Peace in our time!" they trumpet with a flash-
Then sharpen blades for the next blood-soaked clash.
Two empires dance on a graveyard and grand,
Clenched fists raised over a dying land.
They sign the truce with trembling guilty hands,
And tomorrow..... the screams begin again.
I try to hold
The glass jar of life
But it shatters
At the slightest brush
Of my fingertips
One minute we say
"Hello"
And the next
"Goodbye."
How is our measly flesh
Made to handle grief?
How are our sinews and bones
So fragile
As to be crushed
By the faintest impact
Yet expected to carry
The weight of loss?
Love cowers
In the presence of death
For I can't bear to embrace something
That can disintegrate
As quickly as I can say
"I love you."
I try to gather
The glass shards of life
But they scatter
At the gentlest breath
One minute we say
"Goodbye"
And I can only hope
The next
We say
"Hello."
A lawn full of weeds a mouth full of words,
clean them up leave behind the essential.
Floating through the air flying whirlybirds,
fragile can still gain control of that ball.
It’s okay when they’re broken in to thirds,
at times things need to stay confidential.
Fine image that conveys it’s kept after,
that eloquence was built to protect her.
Another minute passes
Another one is gone
The sun has fully faded
Safe to hide until dawn
An observer of this mess
A passenger on this ride
Backed into the corner
While golden children thrive
When uncertainty invades
Stomach fills with dread
Make amends with myself
Before heartbreak comes again
Self-worth is a fragile egg
As is heart, soul, and mind
Hanging on by a thread
Just trying to stay alive
I'd found,
I found a crystal
Oh it's a diamond
So beautiful it is
But why cold, and slippery
No an ice crystal
So fragile and fleeting
Thought I'd found a crystal
A diamond it is not,
Melting away...
Through my warm hands
Their warmth it never embraced
Not broken just gone
Still,
My crystal,
My friend.
I walk in cold snow
with gentle, fragile snowflakes
like the tears I weep each night ~
Drifting, filigree
to kiss my lips- then, the snow
falls faster 'till all is white . . .
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