A fact
Two decoys
in a pond off
Kensington
High Street
and a live
mallard
charmed out
of the sky by
a man-made
cascade
John Lyons
Month: Apr 2018
First will and testament
First will and testament
The world we live in and by
but not for
no purpose other than
the true birth of our self
that work in progress
each of us carries within
the rose focused on its beauty
the thrush and the nightingale
defined species of being
while we must make ourselves
day by day and choice by choice
whether it is nobler in the mind
and in the body to be true
and the essence of poetry
to which Marianne Moore
was by no means averse
anecdote of the soul maybe
but as far from the banal
as one can get
and as far into love
as another will permit you
each incandescent moment
lived for its honesty
and the pleasure
of shared being
living in love not for it
loving that equilibrium
of frenetic surrender
passion of the flesh
that thrills the soul fibres
of the mind slipping into
and out of each other
John Lyons
Under the chestnut tree
Under the chestnut tree
Here under my childhood tree
in Bixhill wood
my story first grew
my limbs learnt what is was
to descend a steep grassy hill
at breakneck speed
to feel the rush of air on my face
to feel the droplets of sweat
forming around my eyebrows
to feel the exhilaration of leg muscles
put to the test
and to feel alive in that moment
for that very moment
to be six or seven years old
and without a care in the world
forgetting all that had passed
projecting nothing into the future
living the purity of the instant
trusting my breath
and the power
of my lungs and knowing
the glory that is to be alive
John Lyons
Brief beyond words
Brief beyond words
Moon over the bay
the sea still
the wind still
the night still
the time I carry
within me still
my heart beating
still
John Lyons
The artist
The artist
In the grand scheme of things
we have come far
and yet we are nowhere
not even the facts of life
are straight
and we remain
fodder for time :
unresolved quests
and ambitions
beyond our station
What is to be expected
from mere flesh and blood
entrusted with a single mission
to love and be loved
So often it is all an act
and death is an over-
simplification
On the banks
of the primeval river
he took clay into his hands
shaped it into the form
of man and woman
breathed life into his creations
so that they might live forever
John Lyons
Word watching
Word watching
A vision in words
while the heart beats
all pleasures possible
but who has lived
without fault
without regret
without recrimination
on the path that leads
over the blue hills
there is no time
just body
mere experience
nothing more local
than the soul
which is the point
of being
as I live
as I die
I am known by
my particulars
how can I distinguish
between the space
around me
and the inner space
of my mind
there where I feel pain
I feel love
and have no shell
no notional carapace
to protect me
I must be open to every storm
just as I would welcome
any word of kindness
all things are possible
all things are probable
and that includes love
John Lyons
A few simple words
A few simple words
When in belief
you move your limbs
you stir the muscles
that will carry you
to a place of beauty
to a time of truth
be it a lone flower
that otherwise
would not be admired
or to a person whom
a single act of kindness
could rescue
from the brink
of God knows what
John Lyons
A life measured
A life measured
A life measured in footsteps
in paces taken
in voices and in gestures
in kisses given
and kisses withheld
a life measured in skies
numbered and tabulated
in the heart
and how the land inclined
this way and that
with its separate foliage
and its exotic birds
that flowered all year round
A life measured in harmonies
in peace at dawn
and as the sun set
a life measured
in questions and answers
and in the congress of bodies
and the warmth of skin upon skin
days lived in the absence
of anger and discord
and the poems there
to tell of love
and to count our steps
to heaven
John Lyons
The red rose
The red rose
It rises up
out of the earth
at first a thing
of frailty
but it grows in strength
it blossoms
its petals attract
all manner of attention
the bee gorges
on its pollen
but the days of its glory
are short and soon gone
its beauty fades
its leaves curl and dry
and slowly but surely
it falls back
to the earth
love outlasts it
John Lyons
A poetic definition
A poetic definition
Words to catch
your attention
a delicacy
on the tongue
to give no message
other than pleasure
and like love
a private delight
revealed in public
Love
as we know
is a law unto
itself
Some things
are set in stone
but no true lover
is tone deaf
there are cues
to heed
and gestures
to embrace
and deft love
will preserve you
in time of need
John Lyons
johnjosephlyons 