The Secret Garden

For many years I pondered
What was behind ivy wall
Sandstone thick quarried
From ancient hill, the one
I gazed upon until my lids
Grew heavy with waiting
For dreams to come
Keys thrust upon me to open
Hulking oak door with bolt
Chamber rusted shut
Determined to make a home
Surrounded by eucalypts
For good cover from
The elements soaking into
My pores
Heaven scent aroma of cineol opens my eyes
Brighter to adore
Walled garden no secret anymore
For before me lies the vast
Hills and plains of freedom
And realise it was I who was contained in my own
Secret garden all this time
In Dorothy’s garden

Mayfair

May you keep sweet company
In these silver lined years
Peach tea horizons swept
Out to golden sea

May your mind sing songs
From your youth on repeat
As lines and marks of years
Trace exposed memories

May photographs long loved
Adorn cracked mended mantle
Carrying the weight of love
As much as you can handle

May flowers through seasons
Line paths you daily tread
Colours, changes, reason
May put us in good stead
Hobart Waterfront, Tasmania

Lights in trees

Eons ago it seems
One night, two phones
Like bricks, dropped
On the grass
Beside the swings
Siren in me called
To the depths of soul
Blackest ink of night
On accused innocent shore
Marieville esplanade
Yachts silent witness
Lights in trees
Pulled back to reality
Grounded me with roots
Hundred years deep
A semblance of friendship
No matter how keen
Held the dear life
Within me
Winter Feast, Salamanca Tasmania