Poetry Blog by keith jeffries

Stillness

Early morning as daylight heralds a new day

I sit alone in my pre ordained space

to be still in thought and prayer

as I contemplate and commune

with the essence of my being

where the Divine Spirit has made his home

In the background I play softly and

listen to Gregorian Chant or the

strains of Peer Gynt in the beauty 

of the morning song

Peace b...

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Held in Abeyance

The death throes of autumn have finally receeded

as the muffled drums of winter steadily begin their desultory beat

Nature retreats amidst cold winds, frost, sleet and ice

to clouds laden with snow waiting to the unleash their confetti

We shrink and cower by open fire sides with toasting forks

 to sleep wrapped in overcoats and gloves under weighty blan...

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They danced the Tango

She sat in a pale blue satin dress with white silk stockings

revealing legs of perfect form from ankles of a delicate strength

She smoked her cheroot in a languid manner

the feathered plumes of her hat, a crown of serene nonchalance

He asked her for a dance,

she accepted extinguishing her cigarette

On the floor, her stage of familiarity, she leaned a...

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HAfter the Cabaret - Impending doom

Outside we heard the distant dark rumblings

in the clouds of impending war

Inside we were oblivious to such a world

as we danced, drank, smoked and made love

Darkness was at the outer limit of all horror

as we procrastinated in luxury and self indulgence

Our heads were buried in the sand as we sipped cocktails

and flirted outrageousl...

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Lockdown

I prefer to call it house arrest

as it is fast becoming an endurance test

Now we suffer human deprivation

an unbearable and intolerable condition

The pubs are now out of bounds

but the milkman continues his daily rounds

I go shopping wearing a bandit's mask

which makes the business more of a task

My glasses steam up and I collide with others

and on one o...

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Acceptance

I came across naive pebbles on a crowded beach

of different shapes, colours and forms

Frequently moved by the ebb and flow of the tide

yet all packed neatly together as if for comfort

Each individual pebble a part of a sea of stones and rocks

no two alike but in a common unison of sorts

I picked one at random, amazed at its uniqueness

no two were allike...

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A Tribute to Decency

If it were not for this patch of land

This small part of God's vast creation

Amongst a desultory but decent people

I would be lying in some back street

Having been raped by a broken bottle

Or murdered and deposited in a field

Where the harvest had yet to be reaped

Or thrown from the highest building

I live, exist only by grace in a place of litt...

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The Divide of Prejudice

We were young and adventurous

curious about the world and ourselves

Our friendship had been forbidden

as we came from different religions

He was catholic and I was not

bigotry had seized upon our young souls

One day he took me to his church

where I glimpsed its interior and splendour

We dared not speak of this exploit

We always m...

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Inner Conflict

There are times when I am enveloped in a dense cloud of unknowing

In a state of utter and inner solitude I become transfixed

The atmosphere becomes pressurised and intense

A fearful beat of a strange sound emits a cascade of anxiety

I become inert, highly aware of where and who I am

Peaks of prominent unassailable mountains pervade my vulnerable soul

and bl...

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You would have found me.....

You would have found me in a perambulator

or on a small seat fixed to my mother's bicycle

It was a time of austerity, of making do with

socks that were darned and pullovers knitted

Our home was a prefabricated bungalow

erected along with others on a bomb site

The German Airforce had re landscaped the area

everything appeard to be new a...

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A Mysterious Warmth

I heard a knock on the door

Two men stood there, simply dressed

We looked curiously at each other

"Are you warm?" one of them asked

"Yes"  I replied, "on the outside"

"But of your inner self" came the response

"I feel nothing here", as I touched my chest

"Come with us to a warmer place" was their invite

We left the house together

The front doo...

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Darkness and Light

The sun is low in the sky

as scanty clouds scud swiftly by

Most of the leaves have now gone

for in most places there are absolutely none

a gust of blustery wind presses against my face

as I bend forward into the wind apace

Leaves of autumnal splendour are everywhere

we choose carefully what clothes we decide to wear

Dawn arrives unannoun...

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