THE BOMB THAT DIDN'T EXPLODE

It’s still remembered today

The bomb that didn’t explode

That crashed through the church ceiling

During the Second World War

Sparing some three hundred lives

A replica may be seen

Here in the vestry corner

At St Mary’s in Mosta

With photos of the soldiers

Called to make the real bomb safe

And despite votive candles

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NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN

This man won medals for bravery

Served in a world war

Mourned for his dead comrades but never

Complained about it

Came home, collected his demob suit

Walked away whistling

Determined to make the best of it

This other man lost a limb, didn’t care

That you would notice

Completed his education then

Went on to hack it

Never asked for...

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URBAN LULLABY

Sing me a lullaby

Of breaking glass

The click of stilettoes

As they pass

The scrape of Cuban heels

On paving stones

Sing me a lullaby

Of drunken groans

Rock me to the rhythm

Of lovers moans

Leave the light on downstairs

As darkness falls

Sing  me a lullaby

Of cats on walls

Police sirens outsi...

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Aberystwyth
a mouthful of a name
meeting of two rivers
that flow into the sea
Aberystwyth
youthful memories of
a town still tugging
at my sleeve like
the hauling of nets
bursting with fish
the smell of diesel
and blood on the
harbour wall
Aberystwyth
all caravans and students,
churches, castles, seagulls,
soggy ice creams,
postcards, monuments
a...

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CASTLES

On wet afternoons

We pay to visit

The English castles

Grim towers of stone

Ditches of defence

Arrow slits above

Fortified gateways

Charities now care

For their maintenance

Count the children’s coins

Provide guided tours

Sell home-made chutney

We wonder around

Tugging Welsh forelocks

Before these ruins

...

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BARDI REVISITED

The road is better now

Climbing from Fornovo

Leaving behind the river

And the valley’s flatness

It’s surface is smoother

Than the winding track

That stirs my memory

At a certain point

The driver pulls over

Waiting for a colleague

To arrive on the down bus

After they exchange places

Our ascent continues

Towards B...

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IS THIS POETRY?

When you wear your thin dress

And look at me

Is this poetry

When I touch your arm

Casually

Is this poetry

When your eyes shine

Magnificently

Is this poetry

When we lie together

Silently

And the breeze lifts the curtain

Gently

To reveal the moon shining

Romantically

Please te...

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A shot of espresso

With hot water

That’s Americano

So much larger

If you want to linger

To take it all in

The cup like a soup bowl

Saucer like a plate

Steam rising before me

Strong aroma

Of roasted coffee beans

A soothing blackness

O Americano

How I love you

How I long to feel your heat

And your bi...

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IMPATIENT SPRINGTIME

Impatient springtime

caressing the shore line

under a watercolour sky,

gentle white tipped

blue waves with breezes

blowing in our ears

whispering of warmth,

teasing us to put away

colder morning memories,

urging the shedding of

woollen scarves and the

lengthening of dog leads.

Copyright(c)David Subacchi.2012

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VALENTINES

What starts as romance

Ends up as routine

With variations

For years in between

Anonymous cards

Carefully picked verse

Until you just sign

For better or worse

And each time you try

To write your own lines

You find out how hard

Are good Valentines.

Copyright(C)David Subacchi 2013

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INDIGNITY

Is this the final indignity

Your royal bones in the common view

Your curved spine exposed to mockery

Collected from a Leicester car park

Was defeat at Bosworth not enough

Thrown from your horse into a field of blood

Betrayed by those in whom you trusted

Wounded by a bard’s cruel fantasies

Richard last of the Plantagenets

Where ...

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Un café e un limoncello

A coffee and a limoncello

Dopo il pranzo

After dinner

Un café e un limoncello

I am captivated by ritual

For me food and drink

Have to mean something

Dopo il riso , dopo il vino

Per piacere, please

Un café e un limoncello

After the rice, after the wine

There’s plenty of time

For a ...

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