Purbeck Falling

We arrived Thursday morning
Campervans circling like sharks on this one in four hill
Targetting the flat spots, tank tops and sandals make their kill
"Saw it from a mile off,  detection powers stronger than Nancy Drew."
Yeah, that's right mate, park it straight across my view.  

Engines always running, a demonic diesel din
Morning, noon and night, my god
What was my mortal sin?
Clouds of smoke engulf me
Thick enough to taste
"No fracking in my backyard, I've got enough to waste"

Concentration camp Kommandants man the front lines
Three layers of security, don't sweat it man, this will be fine
Barbed wire, razor wire, trip wire
Queues longer than Terminal 5

"What's in your bag?"
"Let me pat you down"
"What's in your tankard?"
"You ain't bringing that into town"

Welcome to Purbeck Folk Festival, rising as we fall
I get the feeling my type ain't welcome here at all
My van don't have a fixed in sink
I left my torch at home
I got a tinny in my back pocket
It's these little things you don't condone

I came here to see some music
Some bands familiar, maybe some new
Meeting up with old friends
Those I haven't met yet
And maybe even you.

But if you see me late at night
Standing alone at the bar
Please don't approach me
Just watch safely from afar

Forty beers to chose from, some light and some dark
Twenty ciders and scrumpys, I'm struggling where to start
There's gin and there's whisky, vodka and vermouth
This is it, my turn, my moment of truth.

This is taking far too long
I'm breaking into a sweat
Heart pounding, stomach churning
My back is dripping wet

Here they come now
Sweeping down from the hill
In ones and twos and threes
Hunting for their nightly thrill
From the left and from the right
From the front and from the back
Like a swarm of bees 
I should have seen it coming
I'm surrounded by security

Floodlights blazing
Tazers tazing
Man this is crazy
What did I do?

I know it's unbelievable
I wasn't being unreasonable
I thought it was achievable
And certainly not deceivable
Not having my ID on me
At the age of twenty two

Moments

Moments of calm
Moments of trust
These are the days I love
Not sure where to start or what to do
But these things don't matter in this life
With you
Start afresh this parodied day
These tired lines, this life, I pray
Descend into bitter darkness
Before the day yet starts
Emotion, frustration, desperation
Darkness crawls between me and yew
Crow calls from branches high
Black coloured sky
Car passes, contents discourged
Final rest, heart beats no more
Man stands sentinel to the departed
Cap off, hands held, solemnity started
Ashes to ashes, a trite compere
Ferryman come carry me home
There's something else going on here.

Breakfast Epiphany

Sitting in bed again
Tea's gone, head hurts
Too much beer again
Or was it the vodka we had?
Martyn Joseph at the Colston Hall
One man, one stage
The audience in his hands
A shared pleasure, a shared experience
"There's still a lot of love round here"

I need to ask you a question
But I've found out I don't know how
The words are like weapons
They land so hard, even though
It's not their intention. It's just so.
So please would you make me an omelette
With love and with free will?
And I will savour ever morsel
And eat until I've had my fill
I will take one more step in the right direction
And together we will make it home.

The Girl With The Extra Beer - Original

"Are you single?" She inquired
The girl with a beer in each hand
"Yes" the lie came out so easily
The way it has for so many years
A chance meeting, in a field far away
My first time, her twenty fifth
The Crows and the Monkeys
My only reason for being here

"Will you still be here when I get back?
This beer I have to deliver
My brother is inside waiting
Whilst we dance around each other out here."

The second lie followed as easily as the first
"Of course" as I melted into the crowd
It wasn't long before you found me
My hiding places transparent to you
Maybe you could see through my lies
And that's what intrigued you?

No, I'm not single
Not while I'm married to grief
For a life that had come and gone
And left me as empty as a shell on a beach

A great sadness fills my life
A constant companion, my wife
We spend all our time together
Every day we tear each other apart

No, I'm not just leading you on
I'm hiding something, that much you can tell
I'm hiding so many things 
My life a living hell

But here I am free
Here I play a part
I'm the person I would be
If we could all have a new start

"Do you dance?" She asked me
Again came the lie
Not sure what this one was for
Maybe your expectation was too high.
I dance like there's no-one watching
No-one can prove if I do
Do I dance? There's just one person who can decide that
I'll leave the answer to you.

"Will you kiss me?", the intrigue had grown too much
This man of mystery,
Of brooding emotion,
Of life unexplored
Of course I'll kiss you, but only when I'm sure

Sure that this will mean something
Not just a passing in a far away land
My memories enslave me
Am I sure I want you on my hands?

I came here to express freedom
Much practised throughout the year
I came to meet people
To push back my deepest fears
In that darkness you found me
The girl with the extra beer.

Meditation

Just let the energy flow:
It starts in your temples,
You can feel them beating
With the light that blinds you.

Let it go into your shoulders
Which ache with the effort
And the stresses of existence.
See it move down your arms,
A passageway, a path
To your shining hands
Radiating gold.

Fingers of white,
A thousand miles long,
Reach around the world
And find you.
Uplifting your soul,
Caressing your body,
Enveloping you in the healing protection.

The soles of my feet throb
Feeling the earth energy
Feeding the golden orb that grows inside
A supernova of love and light
A shield to protect me
And chase the shadows and confront the night.

Feel the green mantle
Enriching us all
Lifting our sorrow
Sharing our grief
Forgiving our misdeeds
And bringing us home.

Circles

I imagine sitting in a circle with you

A circle of candles, of power,

Of forgiveness

In sitting room on the floor

In garden as the sun goes down

Knee to knee

Hand to hand

Face to face

Nose to nose

Lips to lips

Body to body

Self to self. 

Ego and complaint at the door.

Love and compassion,

Understanding and respect,

These are the things will guide us

In this place we will be safe

Poetry 101

Alphabet bravado
Can't deny each foolish glimpse
However immaterial.
Just keep looking,
More nuances of perception.
Quiet.
Rewind.
See the universal view.
Where?
Xanadu?
Your zeitgeist.