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Tuesday 31 July 2012

The Night Spawned



As the moon rose
We panicked
Ran like sheep scattered by the wolf
On through the night
To the inevitable conclusion
Suffering in the darkness
Screaming, scratching
Muttering foul oaths of discontentment
Cracking bones in anger
Sweat endlessly dripping
Pushing and pulling
Prodding at the prostrate
Until calming numb arrived
Welcoming the tranquillity
Dumbing laborial pain
Until that final moment
When dawn broke
And the dam breeched
And the deafening howl was heard for miles
Welcome to a brave new world my child

© F Martin
2012

Monday 30 July 2012

Ghost



Melting in the landscape
Vanishing without trace
Forgotten and invisible
A soul without a face

No comfort in the shadows
Dignity stripped bare
No welcome for the warrior
In a land which does not care

Sacrificial dog of war
Once wanted now abused
Cast off he roams unfettered
Alone he sits confused

The lines he crossed at risk
Whilst others watch with glee
The shilling he once pocketed
Remains a paupers fee

Companions now are gone
Forgotten but by few
His life as theirs was forfeit
The bonds of kin were true

Shunned by those above
Unwelcome in the streets
Bitterness surrounds him
In every lie he meets

Wandering in the wilds
A life now unprotected
Hope and future fading
Hailed but now rejected

© F Martin
2012

My Father Said



My father said when I grew up
I could achieve anything I wanted
My father said when I grew up
I could achieve more than he had
My father said when I grew up
I could believe whatever I wanted
My father said when I grew up
I could believe in things he could not fathom
My father said when I grew up
I could be the man that all respected
My father said when I grew up
I could have the respect he never had
My father said when I grew up
I would live the future he dreamt for me
My father said when I grew up
I would live his dream and make him proud
My father said when I grew up
I’d gaze upon a world of wonder
My father said when I grew up
I’d live in a world of peace and freedom
My father lied

© F Martin
2012

Thursday 26 July 2012

Home Is Where The Heart Is


In the wind and the rain
I think of you still
Of the fire and the flame
And the winter chill
Your beauty outstanding
Power in the veins
Your pull so demanding
My heart it remains

I think of you always
Your songs in my soul
Give strength to my days
Keeping me whole
And I think of you dearly
Across well-travelled miles
I see you vivid and clearly
Your charm and your guiles

Drawn home to your glory
I’ll fall down on my knees
And in telling your story
Aching hearts you will ease
Caressing them gently
Rekindling the spark
Empowering them greatly
Once more leave your mark

My heart becomes heavy
As I leave you once more
But I remain ever ready
To return to your door
Your magnificence draws
My heart ever pounding
My breath does not pause
The memories resounding

Red rampant in barley
The Lion stands tall
Proud people and hardy
Jock’s bairns one and all
My heart remains true
To the pearl in the north sky
White cross on the blue
For Alba I’ll die

© F Martin
2012

Monday 23 July 2012

Tidal Collision



Deep water flowing softly
Drifts with calm serenity
Mesmerising to the eye
Life casually rolls by
Below the rolling surface
Currents pop and dance
Bubbling with excitement
Strength remaining silent
Wanders on relentless
Power in extremus

Atopped with silver horses
Quicksilver never pauses
Charging ever downstream
With passion in extreme
Dancing over shallows
Bristling in the shadows
Teeming now with promise
Falls vengefully upon us
Powers on regardless
Riptide strong and heartless

Colliding forces crash and fall
Tidal front another brawl
Snatch control in feudal rage
Stand atop the victor’s stage
Subsuming vanquished waters
In carnal mental slaughters
Feasting on the weakened
All things cherished threatened
Till once more calm resumes
And peaceful beauty blooms

© F Martin
2012

Wednesday 18 July 2012

Ayrshire Lass



Sitting silently in western mist
Waves lap upon her toes
As she sits in quiet solitude
With everything she knows
Welcomes all who pass her
And sees them drift away
She’ll see them in another life
Upon another day
The hearts she’s buried into
The eyes so captivated
Strong and silent as the night
Matured but never dated
Young in heart and old as time
Lovers come and gone
Watched history repeat itself
And never moving on
Winter’s storms beats hard
Cold chills her naked breast
Battens down against the gale
In the maelstrom she will rest
Squalls damp her sodden winter cloak
Flowing in fierce tide
Returns afresh and hope renewed
Gathers breath as winds subside
Now she waits in summer sun
Admirers they now flock
To sit upon her quilted skirt
Kneeling they take stock
Of beauty standing tall and proud
Rough waters now serene
She’ll mesmerise the multitude
Remaining ever seen

© Fergus Martin
2012

Reek



Gathered on the floral way within the city of dreams
Experiencing the underworld of ten thousand screams
Medieval parapets upon sculpted forestry of spires
Sprawling avenues cover ancient funeral pyres
Souls wander on the crags beneath the silent rock
Past the rooted heart and glimpse the fragrant clock
Winding through the maze of embittered cobbled streets
Foreign tongues amid the sounds of ancient beats

The crack at one erupts, shakes and rattles those unsure
To enlightened ears a sound so familiar and so pure
The common tongue of local voices drifts upon the breeze
To oasis in the concrete and once again she breathes
Daubers of new worlds and old, peddle golden wares
Spirits from the graveyard attract a multitude of stares
Where resurrected ladies and mussel sellers roamed
The travelling man mesmerises with all the skill he’s honed

New artists in their finest garb in claustrophobic alleys
Seeking inspiration in tales of feudal opulence and galleys
Tall and silent on royal ground stands one master of the tale
Sunken rooms on reeky streets the master’s words inhale
Mixing tongues and stories they welcomed all who passed
And in the tavern’s shelter forged friendships hard and fast
On footways of forgotten times they strode in awe and wonder
And in the darkness of the room Reeks spell they do fall under

© Fergus Martin
2012

Wednesday 11 July 2012

Full Length Mirror



Reflection in a full length mirror
Tells the story of a lived out life
The furrowed brow and wrinkles
Lay the tracks of angst and strife
Glossed over eyes, darkened rims
Protect the doorway to the soul
Once so bright and welcoming
Shield shattered mind not whole
Withered smile no longer sharp
Worn down to upturned curl
Cheerful grin long since departed
As the tales of time unfurl

Shoulders slumped in broken stance
No longer thrust back with pride
A chest that heaved a thousand sighs
Falls flat and silent, empty inside
Flat toned stomach consumed by time
Aged and scarred through an eon of use
Sinewy strength of a forgotten age
Flesh hangs on the branch too loose
Dexterity lost through manipulation
Skeletoid digits curled up like claws
Weathered palms replace the silken touch
Reflect life’s tale and all it’s flaws.

Thighs once bronzed and golden pillars
Strong trunks that carried body proud
Listing limply now like broken vessels
Stagger slowly through the madding crowd
Shattered knees destroyed by pounding
A million streets and hallowed ground
Ankles swell for no apparent reason
Muscle and tendons become weak and round
Where once were roots strong and supple
Now cracked veins support the tree
Gnarled broken toes reflect the final image
The full length mirror of a life lived free

© Fergus Martin
2012

Tuesday 10 July 2012

Once Upon A Riddle






Weaver spins another silken yarn
Words woven work into a wondrous tale
Shuttle you through threads of meaning
Your safety blanket now worn and pale

Jester recites another story of old
Bewitching hands beguile and succour
The quartered cloak providing shelter
The path he led you on is now a detour

Fiddler scratches out another tune
Chords crafted carefully reach your soul
Furious fingers reach heightened crescendo
Leave you lost with no sight of your goal

Riddler riddles out another riddle
Switching the words in misdirection
He guides you to the gate of knowledge
Till you gaze at your own reflection

The jester and the fiddler
Weaver and the riddler
Go riddle me this
Is this what it is?

© Fergus Martin
2012

Saturday 7 July 2012

Reaching For The Sky




It rose
Slowly at first
No one paid it any attention
Just another construction site
Laying waste to the skyline
Another carbuncle
But
It rose
And took shape
Climbed slowly from the surface
Slowly taking form it rose into the light
Edging ever upwards people stared
Body building up
And
It rose
Reached further
Settled on its base walls reflect the sights around
Four fingers at its tip they claw and clamber for its zenith
Soaring in the dawn greets swallows to its bosom
The sun it touches
And
It stops

© Fergus Martin
2012

Friday 6 July 2012

In The Eye Of The Storm



Listen,
To the rain as it gently wraps upon the window
Forming in droplets of incandescent mirrors
Sliding down the pane in rivulets and streams
Pooling on the ledge and sliding off the beams

Listen,
To the sound as roaring thunder cracks still night
Rippling through the air in atmospheric waves
Cacophony of noise claps the beat of an ancient tune
Epicentre quakes and once more the waves resume

Listen,
To the rhythm of globules bouncing upwards in spheres
A never ending deluge flooding arteries and veins
Regulated pounding forming waves amongst calm pools
Cascading waterfalls that shatter summers budding jewels

Listen,
To the breath of the gale roaring raw through the eaves
Whipping up cyclones of cylindrical havoc and woe
Shredding rooftops of thatch reducing them to straw
Marvel at the eye of the storm with a power so raw

Listen,
To the silence breaking out from the sweet rhythm of the rain
The multi speckled calm of rainbow archways broken down
Thunder laden clouds gather strength and release another deluge
Freshwater droplets released on sodden soil there is no refuge

And Wait,
For the storm clouds to pass and fade to lasting memories
Of lightning flashes crackling through interrupted passages
And for one brief memorable moment the monsoon pauses
Leaving everlasting damage un-paralleled in losses 

© Fergus Martin
2012

Sunday 1 July 2012

Broken Bones




Standing high upon the edge of reason
Looking down he sees his own reflection
Unrecognisable by pain and anguish
Staring blankly seeking new direction
The withered frame he vaguely recalls
Weathered brow furrowed in anxiety
Searching for answers in familiar blue
Pits stare back reflecting broken society

The mirror to his soul bears grim foreboding
Casts shadows on the world outside the door
Walls of past securities crumble all around
Fruitful past now rotten to the core
On the edges of the glass he catches glimpses
Of treasured trips now fading in the mist
The skeletal remains of cherished memories
Crushed hopes shattered added to the list

Broken dreams that glimmer in remembrance
Darkened glass now revels in stagnation
Shifting points in time become as one
The toothless smiles grins back in revelation
Bones laid bare, flesh charred and poisoned
Betrayed by circumstance the mirror never lies
Reflected back at him his future beckons
Today’s reality is seen through saddened eyes

© Fergus Martin
2012