A patchwork of concrete
Black cat sidles along
Gutters eyeing passersby
A calico skips across
In front of me
Brazen on the beat
Darkness crawls
Too far between
Street light skirts
Even after all these years
Smiling at young woman
A creepy sense inside
For our safety
Cliff face laced with mist
Sandstone eyes watch over
Blanket of eucalypts
Butting up against
Blaring highway
Gateway to freedom
All along coastline
State of road and roofs
Never matter
When ocean views evoke
Breathless wonder
I will stand alone
Surrounded by earthen
Treasures unknown
Consider the ways
A seed is sown
A nod, a smile
An act of kindness
Urban wilderness
More extraordinary
By chance encounters
Of my own kind
Bathe in your words
Thrill tickles gills
Until swept out
On riptide of longing
All at sea
Unknowing
I have a special smile
Reserved for the few
Those who know me well
Know I'm thinking 'bout you
Wanderers walk the earth
Meet at the river's edge
Admire exotic plants
Found the world over.
Place is where lives meet.
Sacred, like a mother's love
To lover's unknown
Our people are home
So persuaded by
Her will, was I
As she left me
So did I.
Willing her
To return
To fill
The void while
Learning to love
All the space
Galaxies inside.
To explore
Edge of unknown
Resides within
The words
'I will...'
Far away
Long since
Storm breaks
A heart waits
There is a noble price to pay
For precious moments
Caught unawares each day.
Smiles invade consternation
On work, or other nonsensical plays.
Crawling through choked traffic
Over bridge, no harbour view
Through iron bar fence.
Number plates and brake lights
A flash of beams behind.
A song on the radio
One you might love.
Suddenly, eyes clear
Beaming as broadly
As white clouds over mountain
In front of me.
For all such moments night and day
I carry the cost of knowing
Thousands of smiles can turn
Unexpectedly
Like sun's rays carried away by clouds
Instantaneously, a shower
Pouring down
On my face
Of envy, I know this -
If I wish to attract the gaze
of the one I love
I do not mill around
in coffee shops.
But if I had leaves,
One would discern me
by my form and shape
Asymmetric and oblique
Fold one in the palm
To breathe in sweet tinge
Of cineole, aromatic
Gently wrap the hand
Around my branch
To discern my years
Notice every wind-whipped
Scar and scorch of blaze
Survived over decades
How can one be jealous
of such natural beauty?
Such earthly passion would
Turn anyone green!
The years we've known one another Almost as long as the years between It's strange when time doesn't bridge a gap As we expect with bricks and mortar We both grow older, the years between Become relatively few And yet, I still look up to you Looking at your view From below
Count the stars of heaven 