A great forest grows dark and green,
Where little birds twitter amid the leaves,
Reynard the red coated one keen eye searching,
For squirrels leaping among branches tall,
Making sure the youngsters don’t fall,
A capercaillie scream rents the air,
Sounding like ban-sidhe in the air.
Trees creak and rattle in ancient tree talk,
Close together they whisper and plot,
Sending astray the unwary and proud,
Those who stravaig far from the path.
Deep in the depths a slow rising hill,
Crowned with a wall of log and thorn,
With a ditch to deter those who do ill,
A gate stands with warriors each side,
Armed with sword,shield and dirks sharp and slim,
Protecting those who dwell within.
Built long before by the ancestors long gone,
Their spirit lingering in every log,
Singing their song of “Torr na Craoibhe”, as it was once named,
In the tongue of ancients forever told.
Their song drifts over the trees,
Heard by creatures large and small,
For those who stop to listen and hear,
The wisdom within to teach and preserve,
The old ways of nature and ancient forest,
Helping all to live in joyous unity,
Listen and hear what they say.
© Andrew Provan McIntyre 28.4.2016.
The wind is blowing
Raindrops are falling
Through my window, gusts are howling
Right here right now my soul is loving
The Wintery blast that is occurring
My heart a flutter, my minds at ease
With this constant blowing breeze
Winds so strong they morph the seas
Mountainous waves leave land like Swiss Cheese
Each gust feels like God aboves sneeze
Birds take flight, trees hit the ground
Wood creaking, snapping, a cacophonous sound
Chaos reigns as wind becomes Earthbound
Not a light in the street can be found
Powers out, deadly wires snake all around.
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©copyright Juanita Torr
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My fingers twitch, my mind is racing
Nobody understands what I’m facing
They call me selfish and addictive
They’ve no idea what it’s like to live
As my mind races out of control
I’m like Alice falling down the black hole
My hands grabbing for something to hold
But there’s nothing…its lonely and cold
My heart races I can’t think straight
And all this because my dinner is late
I live my days to a strict routine
Oh how I’d love to just wipe my mind clean.
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©copyright Juanita Torr
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The high-class Prostitute life
Her life full of secrets and lies
Untruths and betrayals are rife
But this life she vehemently denies
Her daughter, left to fend for herself
No choice but to grow up quick
Her needs shoved to the back of a shelf
Forgotten as the dust layers grow thick.
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©copyright Juanita Torr
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In the dark of night
The sea is black
The only light
From the lighthouse stack
All the sea’s creatures
Below the water line
The life on the beaches
Where the sand is so fine
Live as one being
Encompassed by dark
One eye all seeing
Wild ocean park.
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©copyright Juanita Torr
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Grass that crackles underfoot
Arid rusty land that’s parched to the core
TO
Lush green meadows, teaming with life
Bodies of liquid gold that feed nature
Earth hard as concrete, riddled with cracks
Wind gusts that bring to life dust devils
TO
Fat droplets of rain, bucketing from the Heavens
Creeks, lakes, ravines – their cup runneth over
Cattle grazing on nothing, their skeletons protrude
An effort to breathe as their bodies surrender
TO
Cattle at play, Mumma’s and babes
Food aplenty, provides energy and life
Craggly rocks, rigid and sharp
A treeless stairway to heaven
TO
Rocks once sharp, now coated in green slimy moss
A cascade from Heaven brings rainbows galore
Tall buildings, bright lights and millions of people
A cacophony of voices, chaos and pollution
TO
Wide open spaces, a clear view to the skies
Stars shine subtly, the silence is deafening.
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©copyright Juanita Torr
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To the victims of 9/11
Whose souls are watching on from heaven
Know that your memory lives on
Forever, regardless how long you’ve been gone
As family and friends grow old
Their daily lives you still behold
As your spirit walks alongside, in silence
Hand in hand…always there for guidance
Your loved ones still feel your presence near
Memories and heartache still bring a tear
Abating are their feelings of guilt and hate
This was God’s will…for some reason this was your fate
Ten years have passed since the War began
The War on Terrorism…they had a plan
A decade on there’s not much to show
Except Bin Laden’s Death – an Al Qaeda blow
Nobody wants your deaths to be in vain
This horrendous tragedy forever a stain
In the hearts and minds of humankind
Surely though it’s time we put revenge behind.
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***I wrote this poem on the 10th Anniversary. Every anniversary feels as sad as the very first!
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©copyright Juanita Torr
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I am a lonely person
I don’t have many friends
Now is the time to find some
Before my journey ends
I love to listen and talk
I have many secrets to share
Please let me find that person
That special someone who WILL care.
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©copyright Juanita Torr
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Moments like this are few and far between
I don’t know exactly what I mean
Sometimes I can just sit here
Wondering and pondering
I stare off into space
Looking into my own little place
Full of dreams, wishes and successes
These things mean a great deal to me
I have meagre possessions
But I am comfortable
As comfortable as one like myself could be
I have a beautiful child
One with a very strong will
Nearly as strong as mine
Competitiveness is in our nature
We were both meant to be Scorpios
A wondrous combination of personalities
This is just a little insight into my life
The interest is in the eye of the beholder.
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©copyright Juanita Torr
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The evenings are getting chilly
Time for the woolly socks and trackies to come out
My body is strange at the moment
It’s the coming of Winter
Yet my fan is still my constant companion
I sleep out on the lounge
I’m finding the bed too uncomfortable
What I have is called ‘Menopause’
It’s the changing of life
From what…I do not know
So while I’m rugging up at times
I’m trying to cool myself off at other times
The sweat stays at the back of my neck
My hair all wet
Meanwhile my daughter is in her room
Winter P.J’s and heater on
What an odd couple we make.
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©copyright Juanita Torr
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L loyalty lust learning life listening
O openness oneness over-indulgent obsessing
V violent vixen voracious visualising
E erotic equality everything
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©copyright Juanita Torr
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You are so important to me
I hope you know how much
I love you
And this love gets stronger
And stronger each day
we are together
You make me laugh
You keep the smile
on my face
You are funny, smart and beautiful
I know you are an
“Angel” that was sent to me
I thank God for you
Every day
Stay yourself and
Be yourself.
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©copyright Juanita Torr
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I never want us to fall apart
For this to happen….would break my heart
Bub, you are the love of my life
I can’t wait til you make me your wife
That day will be one I treasure
And it will live on in my memory forever
We now have the most precious daughter
So we’ll stick together through richer or poorer
My feelings for you I can hardly express
For you are the reason for my happiness
I believe in you as you believe in me
That’s why the three of us make a FAMILY.
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©copyright Juanita Torr
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You’re unlike any other
By far THE best Mother
My love for you will not end
I’m proud to say you’re my best friend
I laugh and cry with you
But together we get through
You hold my hand when I’m in need
And patch me up when I bleed
I follow in your footsteps
And honestly have no regrets
I hope I can be a great Mum like you
So my daughter loves me the way I love you.
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©copyright Juanita Torr
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My fingers tapping rhythmically on the keyboard
As raindrops fall hypnotically outside the door
The scent of Petrichor; dry Earth dampened by rain
Overwhelms olfactory senses….as addictive as cocaine
My surroundings refreshed, the land will now purge
Water, the recipe for new life to emerge
Crystalised droplets dazzling like diamonds
Decorate emerald leaves in the thousands
Raindrops’ hammering the tin roof is calming
As I look out the window, rivulets are streaming
Raindrops are nature’s way of cultivating
Therapeutic cures for all things living.
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©copyright Juanita Torr
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