At the Paranoia Poetry Club
They all give thanks
For the NHS and their
Cheap Prescription tranqs.
The recovering drunk,
The failed suicide
Both sit together
Side by side by side
Waiting for the mic
To pour into the air
Their personal tales
Of angst and despair.
I sat there, of, relatively,
Quiet contented mind
With no social ills
Or axes to grind,
Listened until I couldn’t
Take it anymore
And at the first opportunity
Escaped through the door
To eagerly drink
A cold pint of porter
The wonderful taste
Of real Liffey water.
My regular attendance
Really could I think
Drive me right back
To excessive drink.
I don’t know how many
Such clubs exist in this land
But I’m sure there’s a case
For having them all banned.
Paranoia Poetry Clubs
Can drive a body to despair
Just by the process of
Sitting and listening there.
Categories:
liffey, angst, anxiety, depression, endurance,
Form: Rhyme
Dublin is Irelands capital city
On the river Liffey
It is at the seashore
With mountains galore
Viking settlement
With many more to come
Bringing changes
Throughout the ages
Diverse and welcoming
Humorous and serious
Dubh Linn meaning Black Pool to those in the know
Continues to grow
Home to many
Workplace for some
It is never hum drum
To those who have never been
There is so much unseen
Including our forty shades of green
Dublin
Categories:
liffey, appreciation, celebration, home, ireland,
Form: Rhyme
An ornamental doe and fawn,
suddenly move. Tails wave, noses nuzzle –
I have mistaken an actuality,
and now am thrown out of my skin.
I’m a millipede of fractal awareness.
I sniff the body-odor of the planet
take inward, then sift out
Australia and Africa.
I pause to dip my face in the River Liffey,
odoriferous waters foam over septum and cranium.
I’m a teaming acre of feelers and heads. Until
an atom of disbelief re-enters its exoskeleton.
The next moment is inevitable;
it is a concrete bunker of inevitability.
I am a stone goblin with a blunt chisel.
Nerve buds are again Saran wrapped.
Oddly, I’m carrying a large red kangaroo
on my shoulders;
it’s demanding to be sent back,
and I would send it back – if I knew how.
Categories:
liffey, poetry,
Form: Blank verse
I saw a homeless man
Begging on O'connell bridge
Behind him the dark stagnant waters of the Liffey
Flowing aimlessly along the quays,
All around him a large crowd of people
Walking to and fro
And somewhere from among the crowd
A kind-hearted stranger turned around
And walked over to the homeless man,
And bending down
Looked into his wrinkled weather-beaten face
His glazed-over drunken eyes
And empty paper cup beside him on the ground,
And spoke with warmth and understanding
To The homeless man
And listened to every word he said
And reached out with a kind and generous hand
And put some money into the empty paper cup,
Then straightening up he turned around
And walked away,
Disappearing into the memory of that day.
W.A CHOLT. Copyright Fergal O Reilly. 2008.
Categories:
liffey, addiction, city, drink, drug,
Form: Free verse
Dublin city
Along the quays
Over the bridge
Across the liffey
North and South divide.
W.A CHOLT. Copyright Fergal O Reilly. 2018.
30th September 2018.
Categories:
liffey, city, urban,
Form: Tanka
When they divide us as a nation
we at large will fall flat on our faces
being worth little as a country in value
selling the rights of our future down the Liffey
I pray for one that the battle is won
as children are the treasures of the heart
nothing can come close in value and love.
Imagine we have a vote to bring in serial killers
make it lawful justice there it crowns every moral thread
where it will be turned upside down in favour of bloodshed
sad reality based fact inhumane practices dwell corrupt
Categories:
liffey, abortion, corruption, creation, dark,
Form: Free verse
Irelands capital Dublin, it's a beautiful city
Famous for its Guinness and Jameson's whiskey
The Temple bar area for music and the 'craic'
Many say on departing "one day I'll be back".
Molly Malone can be seen, with her wheelbarrow
In busy Grafton street that's so bustling and narrow
The silvery grey water's of the river Liffey
Flows right through the city and into the sea.
Busy O'Connell street with its giant spire
Had troubled times with the sound of gunfire
The spire now stands where Nelsons column stood
A reminder of British rule that's now gone for good.
The symbol of self rule the G.P.O. stands
So peaceful now all you hear is the bands
The Halfpenny bridge is a wonderful sight
Even more impressive when lit up at night.
So come on over to Dublin, do come and see
Do indulge yourself, with some Irish hospitality
When the time comes to leave after your stay
You'll promise yourself to comeback one day.
16 May 2018
Categories:
liffey, ireland, places,
Form: Rhyme
We go green on Paddy's Day.
That's because we like it that way.
Green clothing, green Liffey, green beer.
Green faces bring good cheer.
A time to remember we're Irish.
Especially those Paddys overseas.
They go out and drink like idiots.
Until they are on their knees.
It's all harmless fun, we enjoy it,
with parades in every town.
It's that one time of year we Irish
Have the craic playing the clown.
Come join us and make merry.
We welcome you with open arms.
If you sing or play an instrument,
I guarantee you we'll be charmed.
Categories:
liffey, celebration, culture, patriotic,
Form: Verse
Straight-up the arrows,
hard-pressed the doors
to all the rooms
in all the houses
on Clark Street.
Father Coughlin brought blessings
thinned with broth
from potato peelings.
Women poured tears
into fringed shawls,
and buried their dead
above Dublin’s seashore,
along the banks
of the river Liffey.
Through the years,
the ghost of James Clark,
Bugsy’s brother-in-law,
pursued Al Capone
all the way to his grave.
Categories:
liffey, corruption, murder,
Form: Dramatic Monologue
Drenched in Red, with St. Valentine
Straight-up the arrows,
hard-pressed the doors
to all the rooms
in all the houses
on Clark Street.
Father Coughlin brought blessings
thinned with broth
from potato peelings.
Women poured tears
into fringed shawls,
and buried their dead
above Dublin’s seashore,
along the banks
of the river Liffey.
Through the years,
the ghost of James Clark,
Bugsy’s brother-in-law,
pursued Al Capone
all the way to his grave.
Categories:
liffey, grave, metaphor, murder,
Form: Free verse
ECHOES FROM THE LIFFEY.
I hear it loud and clear,
A clarion call for the Irish,
A call to awaken our inner strength and rediscover the true us,
Even the walls echo it.
Motherland beckons,
The lush green fields needs weeding,
The time for grazing is long overdue for our livestock,
Even Our thoughts needs nourishment.
What happened to the sweat and blood of our forefathers?
To build a home for prosterity,
An enclave with vast opportunities,
A home for all.
The flight started with trekkers of leisure,
Soon it became trekkers for pastures greener,
Leaving in its wake a near desolate land,
Where the old yearn for their successors.
No thanks to the men in suits,
Whose misadventures led us down this path.
An unwinding route of doom and gloom,
A nations nightmare.
Mother Ireland weeps,
Wishing for daybreak to be nigh,
To dry up the tracks of her tears,
And silence the echoes from the liffey.
J.D.C AHUMIBE.
NEWBRIDGE, COUNTY KILDARE.
REPUBLIC OF IRELAND.
Categories:
liffey, ireland,
Form: Free verse
This city
has a spire
in the middle,
the needle
of Ireland's despair,
cost us money
and lots of our riches,
this is our city so fair,
a government
in ruling
our ruination,
as the clock
in the Liffey
Stood still,
their time
is running out,
a country so wild ,
yet so beautiful,
yet this is all
we have got,
rocked by mass
unemployment,
emigration heavy
on everyone's heart.
A government yes
They destroyed us,
as they made us pay
For what they ill got,
bailing out these
so called scrooges,
fair is the state
of our nation ,
poor in everyone's heart,
this is the state
of our country
Rich and peasants
miles apart,
gambling
our children's futures,
as job creation,
plays the necessary part,
now this is the state
of our country,
Ireland
A nation
in despair
Categories:
liffey, immigration,
Form: Sonnet
STAR
You ask if there is another,
another sadder than you,
another who's soul is like yours,
if another exists like her.
No! There is no other like her.
But there is another soul,
another soul like yours,
another sadder than you.
Another longing like you,
crying like you,
praying like you,
needing like you,
and wanting like you.
I, the Star of your sky,
the one to whom you speak,
the one for whom you seek,
the one that feels your sadness.
I, the Star, the one for you,
the one that lights your night,
the one that brings you love,
I am she, the Star of your sky.
The answer lies in you,
to find this light,
to have this love,
reach for the Star...
Liffey
02-05-2007
Categories:
liffey, faith, inspirational, uplifting, longing,
Form: Free verse