George Francis Train
Introduced the tram to England
I introduced microwaving the sausage and bun together
To a not-very-impressed-American
We talked and talked into the night
About opera
How Norma's role was designed
For Giuditta Pasta
The weather cooled and necessitated
A dressing gown
He got up and strolled through the room
Pondering whether to purchase four-hundred pound Glastonbury tickets
At dawn, we'd moved onto chess
He advised, 'You gotta ram the pieces down their throat.'
When will I be invited to a Beverly Hills mansion dinner?
mark
time camp-
ing
in
a worldly chair
near your body
fun
scene motion which is a
pendulum at best because to swing
is
not at all a curse from birth but rath-
rather what the hanged man calls
for
once he sees from upside down the exit
door that traps death in with us
There are some
looked down their nose
in the troubled Covid times
at those who bump elbows
as opposed to shaking hands
so with a bend let's start a trend
a new fad across the land
and instead if you please
why don't we
lift a leg and all knock knees
Fly bold into the night, my friend,
and let your spirit soar.
For on your dreams you must depend;
renounce who came before.
A new dawn lies in wait for you,
there at your beck and call.
Your rainbow's end will shine what's true;
the gem who's meant to fall.
So let loose the sorrow felt
from ties that bind your mind,
and know that destiny has dealt
with hopes you left behind.
The morning sun will blaze its light
to pierce the flow of tears.
The arc of color lies in sight;
your pot of gold appears.
population motivated
afterworld adversity
touchingly touchline
detested comrade
undeserving snitch
shoplift stimulated
firing you
unsweet vanquish
torn debilitating
satinpod drenched
occupation serviceable
calmly savour
salvation tablemate
conceptual thanksgiving
(Weekly Magnetic Poetry Challenge • July 27–August 2, 2026)
I sat under a tree somewhere in Nebraska
after a late-night drive in a storm to here
my assignment. Nestled in the sandhills
the morning whispered. In silence I stayed
by a lake where a drive ended. The sun
reflected off a pond, my reflections
to begin the day. Trees and grasses sprouted
from sand fed by underground streams.
A soft breeze whispered, too. I closed
my eyes. Serenity. Pioneers had given their lives
to discover this land. It was mine for now.
I discovered the land for myself. A white cabin
near me was quiet, whether abandoned or not
it didn’t matter. I embraced the silence. Lost
in time. I felt in my mind a new poem form
the words I longed to share when I’d get
back home. Lines broke and found new lines.
Stanzas white spaces moments of silence
always said more than I could say as I gazed
at clouds drifting through open skies. A poem
or two I could take home with me on the long drive.
I had to admit I never knew what I would find.
I see you looking at me,
so cunning and smug.
Must we start our day off like this?
I am your friend,
please be my friend.
If I smile at you,
will you smile back?
See all it took was a smile.
Now I will be on my way,
have a great day.
We are born in the darkness, the lack of knowledge you see,
raised in a world, to become what we want to be.
Without any wisdom, one can not survive,
there are those out there, who will eat another alive.
The lies and the deceptions, the webs that they weave,
the death in the heart, that they truly leave.
It’s a dog eat dog, world out there, where we have to be,
where the darkness of this world, gains it’s strength, in you and me.
It’s subtle ways of pressing, the changing in the heart,
being raised in the darkness, where we were born, from the start.
All the negative emotions, the very things we feel,
the spoken words of darkness, the hearts that they kill.
Where there is no vision, people perish you see,
born and raised in the darkness, till the truth comes to be.
To obtain knowledge and wisdom, one must see the light,
follow the truth in their heart, that keeps them from their night.
Then as we walk, we must keep our shadows at our feet,
knowing by walking daily in the truth, our darkness we defeat.
I saw it in the blue gray skies
light flashing incomparable
like twinkles in your eyes
when you smile
and laugh lines still appear
something simple
I wish
would never disappear
or dissipate in the breeze
as we both watch
over the great big sea
A politician will no longer tell a lie
Not another civilian in war will die
Indigenous peoples are given their land back
People of colour are no longer under attack
We stop polluting the sea and the sky
All this will happen when pigs start to fly.
I always draw the eyes first
not the face, neck or chin
not the body
always the eyes
I am a cartoonist
I enjoy creating fantasy worlds
fictitious animals, mythical creatures
sometimes I draw enchanted trees with faces
I always start with the eyes
Things go round in circles
And the circles are
Often used as vehicles
That can’t get us far
From where we depart
Always we return
From an end we start
From the start we learn
Something to remember
But more to forget
In the dying ember
Little life is set
No golf today
But I want to play
I think I’ll go start a war.
The weather’s too bad
Ooh it’s making me mad
I think I’ll go start a war.
Big war plans
Compensate for tiny hands
I think I’ll go start a war.
Best to attack now “Roger, Roger”
Says the old draft-dodger
I think I’ll go start a war.
He wants a peace prize
With every burger and fries
I fear he’ll go start a war.
But the commander in chief
Acts more like a thief
I think he just started a war.
Echoes of the past,
Blast through my brain,
Dredging up the old again,
I feel I'm going insane,
Every morning feeling the pain,
Thoughts raining down,
Dowsing my crown,
Drowning out my will,
Still I stay strong,
How long must I battle,
This incessant rattle,
Babbling voices,
Pointing out bad choices,
The noise is unbearable,
I feel terrible,
A wearable past,
Left a lasting impression,
Casting me into the pen,
A time of depression,
A session of progression,
Regression therapy,
Tearing at me,
As i look to see the cause,
Pausing for a better view,
Getting a handle to hold onto,
As they keep coming through,
Staying true to what I know,
I throw them all away,
Now i can get started with my day.
Ah, sunrise! A great time to seize the day!
For generations, it has been that way.
Climax – horizon the beacon does ply,
To steady lightening of eastern sky.
For generations, it has been that way,
But to many, this event still holds sway;
To steady lightening of eastern sky.
Slice of cosmos touching earth makes us sigh.
But to many, this event still holds sway;
Time for love, laughter, wonder, work, and play.
Slice of cosmos touching earth makes us sigh;
The light of truth clearer when sun is nigh.
Time for love, laughter, wonder, work, and play;
To which lovers, others have much to say.
The light of truth clearer when sun is nigh;
Sunrise – another chance to live our “why?”
To which lovers, others have much to say;
Climax – horizon the beacon does ply.
Sunrise – another chance to live our “why?”
Ah, sunrise! A great time to seize the day!
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