Preparing a welcome of Islander descent
On the sunny red beach to lucky foreigner
With a prized winning view in every corner
As the touch of beauty graced to this land's content

From a lobster dinner to great relaxation
The archery lesson to bonfire on beach
All for the children smiles with the ocean in reach
As the tip toes are dipped in the vastest station

Do the surprises end or is ...

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In the gypsy lavender scented tent

she gazes into a crystal ball

at a gypsy table with beaded cover

like a stage set of a gypsy's lament

Gazes intently with head like an alien

into the squatting orb of the ball

knowing everything and nothing at all

her mind plays tricks

the glass is dark

where ocean meets the sky, 

future bleeding with a tremulous sigh

he...

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When I was a child they called me a wean

The place where I lived, not a home but a hame.

My mum was ma mammy, my dog was ma dug

My uncle was Hugh but to us he was Shug.

A potato - a tattie, a turnip - a neep

My house was a hoose and to cry was to greet.

A wisnae was wasn't, and did not was disnae

A kiss was a winch and a red face a riddy.

If someone was simple to us they we...

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I don't know how to put it in simpler words or try to make it so hard to understand that you don't actually understand. But i have to say it...and maybe i will say it trying to juggle between the two ways. It's a fact and we see it every day...a freshly bloomed flower always blooms the prettiest. And I have heard time heals..but i have also known time makes things fane. I am still paradoxial w...

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I) A Child

Though comfortably asleep
With a doll by my side,
Often I was terrified
A chimera could lurk
In the dark!

Also from a distance
When a dog bark
I saw it stark
A hyena with a
Horn was out
People to attack
Capable to pose
Its grotesque face
Behind my back.

II) A boy

Smote by
A dream object
To anxiety I was subject.
As she was
Inaccessibly beautiful
Self co...

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I put a fifty pound deposit down
A twelve foot square of room
A toilet that doesn’t flush
And a carpet that’s never seen a broom

The refrigerator it has mildew on
The last tenants cooking, is still in the 
pot
And when you’ve seen the forks and
 knives
Well, you’ve seen the forking lot

The mattress is full of pissed stains 
The last host he was on smack
I found his hypodermic ...

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Cursor flashing

No inspiration to be found

No thought worthwhile of writing

No pictures

Little sound

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I don’t know why I do what I do 

but it doesn’t stop me 

want to do these things with you 

perfecting the copy 

haven’t seen directions I came with 

would they change something 

feel compelled to use what I deal with 

constructing nothing out of something 

compulsions updated just now 

compulsions can’t figure out

obsessions don’t co...

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In the darkness it was a shadow

Highlighted by the edges of the rising sun

Where in-between it began to gleam

As the son stuck its fingers through the seams

With her eyes on

The horizon

Watching

The dusk of the night

Meeting

The don of the day

And with its light

It ended twilight

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My imagination was there;

Within the walls. 

The  information billowed 

like a toxic plume

The weary of hart

gasping for untruths 

The strong,bracing;

For the deluge

Bated breaths, silence 

Cut through the hum. 

Screams;

Within the walls,living

They are not immortal. 

Under the sediment 

Life falls silent

My imagination walks

Ladened, in history’s gu...

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Thy arm; in twisted triggers tied,
To desolate the air,
Where glass in splinters, diamond eyed,
Rolls bloodied, stair by stair.
Young joy despised, as envy claws
Lest freedom take to flight,
But from the horror of its jaws
Will innocence unite.

Copyright © Simon Austin 2017

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Scales

At what point is love in balance?

resolved?

love is not an unyielding beam

but flects as weight of want

or force of need

offsets another's wishes.

Yet such scales can never measure

loss nor the loss of balance.

Words and foto Tommy Carroll

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Veering through Northern valleys
Nocturnal nomad chasing lights
Squinting through misty glass at
Solitude
Rural black
Hills rising raucously
Perfidious silhouettes whispering
Shadows looming
GPS. Reroute. M1. 
Settings were fucked - avoid motorways? 
No wonder

Back to the linear path
Diving towards the sprawling metropolis
Hours to go.
Adjusting frequencies -
The Wind Cries Mary.
...

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Child of Empire, he freely starved in Valetta
Free to resent the many fat priests
Free to go
Desperate, hoping

Stowaway to Istanbul
Free to be beaten by the Ottomans
Sent back to hunger
Not stopped yet

Stowaway to Britain
Set loose in Imperial London
Free to prosper
Free to work

Free-diver repairing Brighton’s Pier
Freely volunteered in 1914’s Expeditionary Force
Free to marry,...

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(News item.)
Gove tweets support for Boris

Is Boris quite calm and serene

Now that Michael is back on the scene

Does he miss the suave charm

And that strong loyal arm

That once pulled back his lips from the cream.?

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Destination is clear

and undoubtedly near

it is sacrosanct dear

as i am the one to steer.

I am no more a mystery

I am here to create history

not admitting with blistory

but can listen bells of victory.

let me fly

high in the sky

let me be sigh

seeing my glittering eye.

My system belief

gives limitless relief

like an euphoric leaf

is what i can say in br...

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to he who was

who is

who will be

do not hinder my growth

because

you are not my sun

shining 

but today

in this moment

i am 

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Sitting here drinking coffee
Watching as people scurry
From one place to another
Little time for each other
Empathy and compassion lacking
From their schedule hardly slacking
I often wonder how they would react
To the ultimate siren's wail in fact

Would they re-discover their humanity
Would their behaviour change suddenly
Would they rush to the ones they love
Would they raise their ey...

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From the mountain

I pour forth

I give you my waters

                to drink

                and the many words

                                of my waters

                                to hear.

My waters have seen

the gathering

on the hill

above the lake

My waters have heard

the prayers

on the grass bank

My waters have known

the worship

in t...

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Moving back and forth 

round and round the merry go round

the calling

the falling 

the whisper it glimmers

but never seems to shine

I feel the heat of the ice in my shoes

I hate the feel of ice in my shoes

but love the feel of heat

The whispers are calling

they falling

round and round the sorrows go round

The east for the rich

the west for the vain

the ear...

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Life throws us around

surrounds us with confusion

The puzzles untwist 

showing a list of could be's

They reveal themselves...

Could it be

That I have

walked into the magic place

of paradise

For there he is 

the one that I was looking for

the one that was looking for me

Could it be

This was meant to be

just as it was

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I see you trying but its not enough

I need more than this

You won't move an inch

So why get upset when someone else does?

Am I supposed to be content with your breadcrumbs forever?

Adults shouldnt have to be told how to behave

I never pretended that I would wait forever

And you never pretended to care

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We went to a gastro pub to celebrate your birthday

We sat among the sunken silly jolly faces

All with their remembrances of former years

When they felt better about themselves

Or so they say

There’s the loud one

The opinionated one filled with facts about this

And about that

There’s the woman whose always in awe

Or is she just pretending

Because the man sitting oppo...

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Oh this feels sore today

Because today is the day I’ve got nothing to say

Where’s she gone and what’s the use?

Where, exactly, is my wonderful muse?

See – it doesn’t even rhyme.

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There was life, it seemed, in the Estuary
the flats blistered bubbles that rose and burst like gasps
brackish pools guarded poking razor clams
and whispering whelks
gulls paddled respectfully around the lumpy porpoise
I shielded my eyes
tapped a stone in time with their crys
saw the lumpy porpoise nudged by rising tide
like wrung and twisted Estuary birds afloat by fruitless oyster beds
o...

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I‘ve fallen for another man

A man that I would marry;

And though I know I never can

I’ve lost my heart to Harry.

Hats off to Harry; he’ll break your heart

He’ll take your best defence and tear it apart

Our home-grown guy will make you others cry cry cry

Hat-trick Harry’s hit the net again.

In Autumn and in Springtime too

Or winter when it’s raining

You know ...

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sleep, don't wake me:

If I could paint
I would these half closed blinds, lit and peering by paranoid neighbors, half asleep: half in a dream, an abductee of a frozen frame, a refugee caught in a dried and rotting wooden square

if I could paint you'd be a sunset
long since gone, but whose laughter echoes in the dark
stark as halogen lamps
ark buzzing the shell of life into these streets,
...

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There's no end tonight.
Sat at the same desk
waiting for the next chapter to walk in
but nothings moving
just the aspidistra nodding
to the tireless fan,
the Venetian blinds
blowing the scent of
rain soaked streets.
Down below the street lights
change to noone.
A single green light blinks
In the direction of the harbour.
An ant crosses the great plains of my desk.
I sit back and writ...

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Slowly you disappear into the past,
yet you are buried in my thoughts which I'm forcing to last.
Everything that you do,
finds a way to touch my heart,
and every word you say,
shows the beauty of your art.
Your bleached white hair,
perfect smile,
cute little nose,
an honest representation of your soul.
You say you want to give up,
but you don't have to go.
You're not alone, nor will yo...

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She glided past me in the street,

Sweet, petite...good enough to eat.

And leaving - to mark where she went -

She left a lingering heavenly scent.

.......................................................

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‘If you make me Emperor,’ Hadrian declared,
‘I will build a wall in Britain,
from the west coast to the east,
to keep out those marauding Scots
who come to steal our sheep.’

The partisan crowd roared in approval,
but the left wing press were less enamoured
of this charismatic campaigner.
He came, he saw, he’s bonkers!
was the headline in the Mercury,
while the Herald ran with Emperor M...

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Fireflies on a summer's night

Are a wondrous sight

Flitting from weed to flower

Casting long across the lawn

To a far bed of blossoms and herbs

        flashing … flashing ...

        their little lanterns.

Reflected in our eyes grown wide

Our mouths little tunnels of 'OOOH!'

We watch, silent as grass

As twilight deepens

And the tiny bugs pass

      flashin...

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There once was a poet named Debra
Whose name only rhymed with 'a zebra'
'Til a South African breeze
Changed her 'As' to strange 'Es'
And now she's got "ebracedebra"

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A white t-shirt that goes to my thighs.

And covers my genitals when my arms aren't raised.

Is a convenient and useful tool that you can have in your very own home!

Comfortable!

Affordable!

Sustainable!

Be a fashion trend in your own house, show your bathroom mirror what style really means!

Pair with moderate acne and puffy eyes for that special flare of originality!

It's ...

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What did I do?

I'm sorry I hurt you.

I've never been this sorry

Like a sky so starry

You're the light to my night 

You're the courage to my fright

And I've cast you away

Thrown you to the fray

And I'll do whatever

Whatever you want forever

Anything to get you back

Because my life's gone slack

And I need you

Your every blue

I need your smile

To cover my ...

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I've heard it said

that when it rains it pours;

but that when life closes a window,

it's to open up new doors.

And yet, in spite of what's ahead

I fear my heart's holding me back.

I do not wish to go through doors

when all I see is black.

The colors that I used to see

so vivid and so bright,

I now know are the cruelest lies

when brought into the light.

It seems ...

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I can’t tell you.

But last night, you entered my chest

for play, some kind of game, like ‘Operation’

and then I couldn’t sleep

I jolted – shivered – jerked – quirked,

now my eyes don’t close

and my body is a pulse,

you tiptoed across my ribcage,

leaving foot prints enlaced by landmines,

you slept on my lungs,

short wired my arteries,

you clipped the circuits of my ...

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Bait

fat man

has an apple

picks a worm

from its flesh

and sticks it

on a hook

hangs the rod

over the river

casts the line

into the water

tugs a little

teases

the bait

glints in sunlight

refracting

in the water

silver sliver

whispers “feed”

all the little fishes

come

a-nibbling

round the worm

in the swirling

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Life Tests

Everyday, everyone is tested

From a house, to school, to outside

We will never be well rested

To be fully focused and abide

Since we can't really say no

As life falls like an endless rain

From a text to a tornado

Or a hello to a hurricane

While the choice being ours eternal

To be affected or effected so simple

To take it personal or genera...

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Been wrestling with conceptual seeds. Thoughts of love

disturbing me,

passion troubling me,

desire corrupting me

Ideologies challenging me.

Until a spark of enlightenment light the room. Then I become a light to myself.

‘Surrendering to the other is a gift’ says the inner voice. It comes unconditionally from the heart.

Its meaning is existential.

The only way to know is...

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A LITTLE LIGHT DISTRACTION
  FROM W.O.L.'s MISERY PERMEATED PAGES

Mum and dad were so excited...that early April morn
by the arrival of another son...their second to be born
every bird residing...on this half our blacked out sphere
sits waiting in good vantage...silent on a tree
to welcome one more infant day
and coincidentally "me"
the rising sun creeps in the room
chasing away...sta...

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The house is silent now

syliva being churned disturbs the air

A total eclipse of the sun

A total eclipse of my heart

A darkness cast upon my soul that I took part

It took two to sail the ship

Two to be strong

One not fully equipped

The gayle forces did not lift

Tensions bared tight

the main sail torn from the hull

The troubled waters over take the ship

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I stare straight into the sun 
a rock doesn't in the river run 
unlike the witch 
I sink like a stone 
unknown 
cold 
alone 
as in the beginning 
numb 
to my existence 
lost 
in oblivion 
a round a square 
to triangle crowned 
no coming back 
the clown drowns 
there is no sound 
out in the clouds
upside down 
hanging on a frown 
my colour fogs 
to a clay like brown 
I whistle...

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He gave me a rose today,
It was not any Rose day,
But for his brutish words last night,
I know he is sorry so I smiled.
He gave me a rose today,
It was not our anniversary day,
But for the blood I haemorrhage last night,
I know he loves me so I smiled.
He gave me a rose today,
It was not Valentine's day,
But for the clash we had last night,
I know he cares for me so I smiled.
He gave m...

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Sleeping, dreaming

I see you, soft

Slipping into silken dreams

I lie here with you

I can only hope

That I lie inside of you, too

Can I nestle into your soul?

You already have mine

Do you know

That I would slumber forever

If only to be by your side?

My love, my heart drips gold

And overflows with

The thought of you

If only I could

Lie here like...

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Charlie clark.

Huron high school has Randy as a coach.

Animal. What my dogs are.

Randy, the coach for huron.

Lebanon is a country.

I like pizza.

Eat pizza everyday.

Charlie Clark

Live everyday. Die.

ABT’s are food I like

Rabies is a disease

Kalahari is a place I go

Thank you

-Charlie Clark.

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Her lips are sewn shut
Her seams ripping at the sides
She has been stuffed with fluff 
Much more than she can hold
Her fragile fabric fraying
As it stretches across her thighs 
The stuffing is suffocating 
Her stories wanting to be told 

Yet peculiarly it's pouring 
From within her beating chest
The stuffing slowly flowing
Into her already swollen breast

Her lips are sewn shut
Her...

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And falling though this casam

Is like flying down a drain

Rushing like the water

Falling hard like rain

In the depths is darkness

We all appear the same

And all our skin is harshness

Burning us insane

my fingers graze the wall

But there’s no where to hold on

It is because we want to fall

Through this hole that we belong

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Cancel all you want

Get away from me

Get what you want

Get what you need

I never needed you

And you never needed me

But what am I kidding

I loved you so much, all I had was envy

Friends I thought we were

Friends you told me

By then you had left

You always leave me

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sorry to the who

but I don’t care to think I know you anymore

I'm like a pinball rolling towards what’s in store

I don’t even know what’s at the bottom 

of the slightly sloped hill but I ought err um

I’ll never know til I get down near IT, maybe

there’s nothing up here to change IT, maybe

with all these things and flashing lights

reflecting through my chrome coating 

I’m...

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