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Best Poems Written by Rob Tierney

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Details | Rob Tierney Poem

Friendships

FRIENDSHIPS

Friends are the family
You choose for yourself
They're not built on money
Or to improve your health

They add so much to us
It's hard to relay
But disown a good friend
There's a high price to pay

A friend in your heart
Is worth two in the mind
A good friend, a true friend
Is real hard to find

Once you have found one
Do not let them go
With good friends beside you
You'll defeat any foe

A true lasting friendship
Built over the years
They've sat and laughed with you
And dried lots of tears

Birth, marriage and death
They've witnessed it all
You've tripped and you've stumbled
They won't let you fall

They'll guide you and help you
Sort out bloodied knees
With a smile and a soft word
Troubles halved with great ease

They'll coax and cajole you
To stand up for yourself
Their friendship's a free gift
You've no need for wealth

A return of this favour
Is all that they ask
No time and no money spent
The easiest of tasks

A two lane arrangement
To “Give as you receive”
If you don't return it
Expect them to leave

You'll upset their feelings
You could make them cry
Now sad and dejected
You wave them goodbye

So listen to me now
And listen up well
A friendships no possession
You're unable to sell

You can't count out friendship
It's deep in your heart
If asked to explain
You'll know where to start

It is spiritual, it's loving
It's “never say die”
It's a handshake or a warm hug
A glint in the eye

It's a total emotion
It stands out alone
It's a humorous message
Or a chat on the phone

It's often unspoken
No words to explain
You just think of the person
To smile once again

A loving mutual bond
Between two good friends
No matter the distance
The miles it transcends

So look out for your good friends
Keep them in your heart
Distance or time parted
Can't keep you apart

So love and cherish them
Your love you will send
From this day forever
Til your life's at it's end.

Copyright © Rob Tierney | Year Posted 2014



Details | Rob Tierney Poem

Comparisons

COMPARISONS

I sit here now back on my bed
Bandaged and still quite sore
I think back to my Mum and Dad
And all they both endured

My Dad he died of cancer
My Mum of MND
Both were unpleasant ways to go
Distressing all and me

My Dad he said the whole way through
That such things were quite shit
“It's not the hand that you get dealt”
“But how you play with it”

He played his days, diagnosis on
With courage and true grit
He even kept his old jumper
Into which he once had fit

In his last days his breath grew weak
He just slept more and more
No longer looked like my dear Dad
Not like he'd looked before

I wasn't with him in the end
When he drew his last breath
I wished I'd been to hold his hand
And hold him as he left

My Mum was strong for all of us
Who were then left behind
We tried to not upset her heart
She's say she didn't mind

We spoke of Dad and often laughed
But sometimes we just cried
It cuts us all when we all thought
Of just the way he died




Bereft of hope, robbed of his strength
Left just an empty shell
Locked up tight inside his frame
He must have gone through hell

Then comes my Mum, my guiding light
She strode right to the fore
She grasped the lead and stood up tall
And led us all once more

For 10 years plus she moved right on
Taking all in her stride
You could tell she missed my Dad
Some things you cannot hide

She too grew ill, and felt real weak
They couldn't find out why
When told that she was terminal
I just sat down and cried

“Why was this all happening now?”
“This all seems so unfair!”
My Mum just smiled, said “C'est la vie”
And sat back in her chair

We visited Mum alternate nights
Myself and partner Lynn
Some days we did a double shift
Although it did us in

I too got ill, not bad of course
But I could not visit
Aware of just how ill Mum was
But I could not risk it

Xmas '11 was an awful time
It really was so sad
Advancing days, time growing short
Not knowing how long we had

My Mum was now in her last days
She knew it too as well
It was just like a crap repeat
Of my Dads sheer hell

Her last day came, I got the call
As I put down the phone
I realised now straight away
I felt now so alone

An old orphan, a silly thought
No Dad and now no Mum
I waited for it all to stop
But no release would come

My world just stopped, the sun still shone
The world just turned each day
My heart was black, devoid of love
“I want to run away”

But that is not the man I am
I buckle but I do not fall
I'm bruised, and bashed and bloodied
But I am walking tall

I feel I am my fathers son
Much more now than before
For those having a real nightmare
I really do implore

Do not give up, do not back down
Stand up for what you feel
Don't be part of the machine
Do all that makes you real

Break down and cry and shout and swear
If its what gets you through
Who gives a damn what others think
Just be true to you

I didn't think I'd get over
Losing my dear old Mum
But now it's over 2 years on
And rarely I am glum

All I do is sit right down
And shut my eyes real tight
And I am back with Mum and Dad
And everything feels right

Whoever said the age old phrase
“Out of sight is out of mind”
Please send this silly sod to me
I'll boot their big behind

My Mum and Dad, live evermore
In cells and blood and mind
And through their kids and legacy
They both have left behind

Still here on earth not visible
Most of the time it's true
But I still sit and talk to them
As I would talk to you

I talk to them, you'll think I'm mad
I simply do not care
It just makes me feel really safe
To know that they're still there

So now I sit down in my room
Upon my empty bed
They both reside down here with me
Even though both are long dead

There's more to life than physical
Of this you can be sure
There's spirits, aura's genetics too
And feelings too are pure

So when I think of Dad and Mum
I sit down with a smile
And shut my eyes to be with them
For just a little while

I feel their warmth, deep in my soul
Just like a summers day
It brightens up my darkest times
And chases them away

I'll leave you now to close my eyes
And see them both again
I'll tell them that I spoke of them
With love and peace my friends
----------XXX---------

Copyright © Rob Tierney | Year Posted 2014


Book: Radiant Verses: A Journey Through Inspiring Poetry