Six long weeks
roaming the dry crust
of a sun burnt wilderness
Nothing but rocks
and red dust
The hot desert wind
that flays the skin
now murmuring
with words broken
of souls lost and forsaken
Perhaps it’s far better
upon this alien terrain
I finally surrender
to the haunting trauma
I’ve tried in vain
to never remember?
‘The Game Changer’
The nature of the game
Accumulating riches?
Chasing fleeting fame?
Crossing the line
after a steep climb
with a golden star ⭐
next to your name?
~ Paul the Apostle
(Philippians 4:6-7)
Like a Rising Stone
A time to live
to seek
to be found
to hear truth
how sweet the sound
Veritas
to be tasted
To love
and to be loved
Without it
a lifetime
truly wasted
. . . or not long enough?
The Malingering
seven long months
convalescing
like some earth bound wraith
unwelcomed
upon consecrated ground
whilst circling the deepest abyss
of some malevolent virus
to which I had no resistance
hellbent on my imminent death
in my weakness
in the darkness
faith put to the test
with a living dose
of heavenly strength
To know what Love is
with just a glimpse
through a distant door
ever so slightly ajar
That scent of life’s fullness
that just floating in the air
with the allure
of joyful abundance
and so much more
somewhere beyond
all those schemes
ending in failure
and dreams forsaken
littering an unswept floor
where souls are broken
this side of a shadow curtain
Bursting forth
from the Hotel Eden
a thunderous explosion
The trembling earth
cracked wide open
as from the fiery breath
of a vengeful dragon
Smoke and dust swirling
Searing flames
like hot tongues of venom
Shattered glass descending
as vicious rain
over everything broken
The dead and the dying
a shrine to destruction
Upon the bloodied lips
of dazed confusion
a burning question . . .
“How could a loving God
allow this to happen?”
The emergency room
in my dream hospital
is well stocked
with state of the art
pharmaceuticals
and strange alien devices
that light up
with the slightest touch
From a distance
“Suivre le fleuve …”
in the gentlest of voices
NO EXITS ~ EXIST ON
In the car park of a stark oblivion
best to leave your engine running
Don’t plug the spark
Don’t phone it home
all on your own
in the brooding dark
If you’ve got the app
of a beating heart
with an overflowing cup
about to break
don’t go hopping for the exit
like a white rabbit lost in transit
all hectic to be running late
for a meet ‘n’ greet
with dire fate
Don’t go scanning the trash can
like a fox on the run
Don’t go canning a living plan
so grand
whilst circling the drain
with a fearful frown
when there’s a garden party
going down
right here … and right now
in a bright
and sunny Wonderland ☀️
Why the tears my dear friend?
Fear and trepidation
Spreading across the land
The future …
Emerging from a past
Of processed confusion
And confected division
Is coming down fast
Like a border incursion
Those good times
High on industrialized crimes
They just couldn’t last
As the die is finally cast
Is it too late to make a stand
In a world out of order
Where even the weather
All helter skelter
Is hitting the fan?
David Redpath 