Angels of light

you took the bullets of  a blind rage
so far removed from reality drugged
mind controlled maybe not even him
what about the other man they caught
he was there at the school as well
did he kill all the children and blame
Adam and did he killed Adam too.

Are we mind controlled we bought
the story about nine eleven after all

But who cares for now we cry tears
for the little ones with the angel eyes
bodies filled with shrapnel and hate
bodies here and there and over there
guns guns guns and more guns no oh
go away from here guns go away now

I want to hear the children laugh
I want to hear the children now
dance and sing and giggle but
now it is so quiet and so lonely

Goh Poh Seng

The Immolation (published 1977) is obviously a story set in Vietnam. The author, however, is Singaporean medical doctor, the late Dr Goh Poh Seng (1936-2010).

It's late and its early

The computer is noisy  whirring away
the kitten crawls all the desk fascinated
watches the screen cursor move
gentle one he only sits on my shoulder
his whiskers tickle as he plays with my hair 
he curls in front of me between keyboard and
tries to distract my strokes
the future it looked so bright with cars
and bicycles running on batteries
alternative power
community housing
free energy and
getting of the grid
now we are marching
into a void of  blackness and coal
It is three am and time for sweet sleep to dream of light
another day has passed of connections and phone calls
of friendship and work on the farm gathering walnuts
that mother earth cured out of their green soft hull I
gather and dry them in the drying cupboard thanking
the tree for such abundance the days are changing
the rain came in soft and welcoming as the earth's plants
celebrated three months of drought and drank deep
the colors of autumn call me to paint light orange and red
the leaves fall big and beautiful from the maple tree to
brighten the laneway green ribbed the color of Canada
deer gather in the orchard does  mothers and bucks
horns pointed they are so majestic elegant hatted ones
walking on grass turning green again the silence of this
season is so romantic and filled with longing for peace
yes peace is paradise should be everyone's rights being
the right to be and then facebook clips tell stories of pain
why John Kennedy was murdered for the speech he made
but Obama and Romney will never elevate us at all
pawns in a game of money and oil for blood they are
not men enough to take the bullet  did to bring down
the nameless faceless ones I want peace and I want for
 every person on this planet to have shelter food and
not be dying on the street enraged at their fate of pain
oh cruel and sorrowful mean nasty ones who hurt self
and others wake up wake up wake up wake up now

history lesson

Down thru time man has imagined how he wants the world to be
it started with God who created you and me and every blade of grass
what chance did we have when man was so busy organizing eveything
political systems ideas huntas juntas dictatorship democracy freedom
Yes men were planning plotting climbing the cooperate ladder  and
we were washing the clothes making the dinner planting the corn
raising the babies sweeping the floor making the bread cleaning
cleaning the corners of dust and grime and sprouting the beans
man was dressing himself in garments of gold ripping the earth
making the weapons of mass destruction experimenting plotting
making war on each others making countries building empires
We were taking  out the compost to build new soil tilling the earth
making curtains and sewing bits of cloth for something new to wear
we asked for nothing and we begged for food to feed the children

If men would spend the day making bread and washing clothes
we would know peace in the world if man became a vegetarian
we would have simplicity and generosity and graciousness

   

Tigger the cat

Purring playing dasws` he wrote that word as he climbs overe me
wanting 100% of my time to notice himni purring ball of fur
he is impossible to have and knows nothing about writing
his paws distracting the keys  pulling down sterio cords
playing always playing with bit of paper chasing it around
our life has changed since he came here and love oh love
only a kitten a baby a ballon or a bubbling stream could
invoke such delight or tease the soft side of my nature

Stone and water

Stone a million years of sand and water
are we not as old as time itself if only
we could remember the whole story
when we were a single cell ambeoa
flowing in the waters of all life coming
ashore then learning to walk upright
against the better judgement of spines
we jumped some stage in evolution
is that the reason for our confusion
with each other and this journey we
are on waking flying driving fast yet
we are still in the forest grunting and
groaning our daily existence to be one
with all the elements of earth herself
now we are driven to distractions by
this virtual of violence and decay and
we have forgotten the simply pleasure
of swaying in the wind by the river edge
oh glory be to our maker that we forgot
and forgot ourselves along the way too

Emily Carr

At the art gallery your painting overwhelmed me to tears
you had captured the heart of everything completely
the west coast the people the places and rainforest
your brush strokes bring to life the aroma of mystery
and you yourself brazen loud and alive sweet bear
like Van Gogh a shinning star burning bright your
sails caught the wind  heaven on each newcanvas
you caught the great mystery and more you caught
the aroma of the forest and the  morning dew light
totems against the sky and totems in the forest
fascinated by the art of the first people here
you paid homage to their relationship with nature
you had no time for the polite and boring dullness
of the english upper class you were the wild woman
of the woods Emily you were the breath of imagination
you touched my soul with color and passion and
these tears fell all over my winter coat unabashed
I sat for hours drinking in your world and I long
long to know that passion by which you lived unabashed

For Phil

Will I loose you too like the other men gone
my dear strong giant of love and compassion
I cannot stand the idea of you not being here

You accompanied me to grandpa's funeral
and I felt safe beside your tall strong frame
I felt safe when you are close by protected

How can I tell you all these things now that
that you are fighting for your own life as that
damn cancer is attacking the side of your neck

You may have an appointment in heaven now
but the thought of saying goodbye is
just too much and my heart is so sore

An old seer told me once that he saw
men around me dying and all my life
oh beloved friend of mine not you


I cannot imagine you closing your eyes
before I close mine forever on this world
I cannot imagine the loss of your laughter

Half sleeping to see you weary and tired
from the pain of seeing the forest fall
why you are like a giant tree yourself

Yes a giant cedar that is you dedicated

Dear God in heaven please spare him
please take this cancer away and give
him life like he has never known 

Peace of mind and the courage to fight
for another day to hold all his children
if my heart is breaking  what about theirs

Death that place that calls us one by one
on the top of the mountain and release
all that is of here like the wind to dust

I love you dear Phil as a sister loves a
brother as the earth loves the rain and
sun I love like the sun loves the moon
I need you here for many more days
I need to here till we both grow old

Happy Birthday To ME

I was born this day in the rain many years ago
to Winifred and John who was absent then
Winifred was alone and for her efforts she
was locked away for giving birth in freedom
illegitimate they called me then born out of
wedlock,on the wrong side of the blanket
never the less I existed to be here strong
I was born on the last day of July,after the
second world war a peacemaker come to
protect the children of the blue planet to tell
them we had another place to go if this one
was destroyed by the men who do not care
for women children babies oceans and life
My name sheila for the feminine race the
face of all that is divine and balanced in love
Winifred  Winifred \wi-nif-red, win(i)-fred\ as a girl's name is pronounced WIN-a-fred. It is of Welsh and Old English origin, and the meaning of Winifred is "holy, blessed reconciliation; joy and peace". Winifred, a martyred Welsh princess, is traditionally called the patron saint of virgins.

John Lennon sings for the Olympics.

All  we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance

Resound this song of that big bell that has no love
That big bell that will try to destroy us all now
To bring us to our collective knees in sorrow
Blood drinking vampire soul stealing bastards
Our love will shatter your illusions of war forever
Our love will break the spell to will try to cast
To bend our peace to your hate and  pure evil
Yes before you open your satanic ritual we will
Call in John Lennon and all the choir of angels
All the dead will rise and sing the song of peace

All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance

Moontime

We used to set our calendars by the turning
of the of the moon and the fine tune
of the cycles of the womb to were light
where only a woman can go into her self
that was before the darkness of perversion
and the end of beauty and gentleness began

Spilling blood became the only game
along with the rape and death of women
yes yes I know it has not stopped and
if like me reading the bad news just gets
a little bit too much for your weeping soul

I want to take you on a journey to the a
place where the great balance is returning
yes in the meadow the woman are singing
and they are giving back to the earth the
gift of healing from their flowing blood
and no one gets hurt and no one cries
the blood of heaven flows into earth


women are releasing the memories
the memories of a long time ago when
they sang to the moon for they knew
the rhythm and patterns to follow the
moon showed them the way 

Shift the Dog

His body stiff cold damp lifeless now
walking north in the orchard he died
alone like he lived independent dog
my loss of you is complete forever

so old and yet so young in memory
you bounded past us on the path
did you remember when you pulled
sleds across the Ontario winter land
even in old age you would bound
out in front of us down the path
strident white tail up in the air you
were pure beauty in motion fast
and now you are buried deep
and all we have left is your fur
we carry a piece in our pockets
oh my sweet handsome Shift my
heart is so sad for your passing and
yet I know you were such a gift
God DOg in heaven soar beyond

Early Morning Walk

I am standing at the gates of heaven
two stones sing the road for me
gathered at the beach
early
morning the best time of day in stillness
there is the haunting beauty of prefection
and I am at the door of heaven singing
singing for the ones in Tibet who burn
who burn their bodies with passion for
the liberation of their county oh the pain
the strength of mind it must take to die

Now I get to live this life of pure bliss
in country road I walk with birds singing
Heaven I am in heaven but I feel hell 
Romeo Dallaire is on the radio talking
talking about the global politic of pure
indifference to the flight of  suffering


I am walking in the early morning dawn
with the dog god dog with me he is so
full of love and in the moment he is all
the stones sing me home now sing me
an understanding of my world here
my world in a moment of knowing
it can all change in a fraction the blink
of and eye and it is over life life love
the young men of fire the red flames
flying as one runs he is on fire  get
a blanket of water smother the pain
oh God he is somebody's beloved
now long does the body withstand
I am at walking in the door the door
of heaven singing their death song

Conflict

Stand up and fight for your self: fight the good fight
with all the love and charity in your heart now
speak with compassionate passion delight in
words that bounce from from your heart core
the word is right if you know the wisdom
the word is right if you know the meaning
stand up for your rights Bob Marley said

Shari swims with Whales

Record keepers they walked the land before returning to the great ocean
You were on a ship traveling across the ocean when your captain said
The  purpose of this journey was his own death that he planned before
In that moment a storm arose and the ocean screamed her furiousness
You lashed him with ropes to the inner deck and you took the wheel
In the eye of the storm you became the needle and the whales came
On each side of the boat the whales guided your path  in watery deep
You held the wheel and  muttered prayers to each molecule help
The record keepers guide your unconsciousness the boat survived
The man gave up on death and you added another notch to life

            A Poem For My Son Ronald

This lifetime you came in to Haiti to the sorrow of loss
Your mother died and you ran into the road to die too
They sent you to Montreal to your father's house and
I know little of your life in that time, intelligent boy
You got an education in life in love in the sorrow
I will not mention the sorrow inflicted on you now
In your search for meaning to find again mother
You came to stay here in the winter  of long ago
I remembered you were my son in Africa Temba
Your legs were crooked and I took you to see
the medicine man who cured you with plants
You are such a strong kind loving soul man
Fate gave you a best friend called Mandala
You walked beside you for years and years
You went north into the woods of Canada
Your hair changed color as you grew old
My blessing for you is to find yourself

Learning the lessons of this lifetime


You ask what I was afraid to show and
my rib cage slowly opened for you then
but it was empty for my heart was lost
lost in the grief of being abandoned early
No child can ever heal from loss of mother
I never wanted to be tied down or settled
It was my aunties who demanded conformity
said I needed to find a man get married soon
You came along then and you stayed around
we adventured on your motorbike brilliant
you intelligent brilliant minded man how
much you fascinated me you were busy
your eyes were as green a Irish stone
I went along for the ride and it was cool
until we got married and tried that game
it was terrible and I hated being a wife
we grew apart in Canada in the winter
I left you forever with no thought of it

At forty I met another man with blue eyes
and he became my destiny and my pride
we belong together and both our birthdays
add up to nine we are the hermits now each
delighting in the others company and his heart
was broken too about the same time as mine
he is my day and night he is my yin and yang
he is the reason that I came here once again
to find him for he is my purpose and reason
to be of service to him alone and he is me
and we are of the one drop of light left
beloved of all the men I ever met and left
he is the best of them the very best

dear men who loved me for a time forgive
me for breaking your heart if I did that
it is only that my life purpose was to find
this man that was my other half my core
you delighted me but it was surface stuff
not the deep core of meaning that I sought

Learning the lessons of this lifetime
for sure it is to be of service
from the beginning of this time
I walked in the clarity of light
with and developed  knowledge
that the earth was my mother
the sky my father and I a part
of every water drop dripping
from the essence I came in
late July I came to be here
on my great mother's belly
the journey was long from
Conneywarren to Ballyheather
fragmented and heart sore
 nature healed me and Louisa
let me wander and wonder in
the hills and pastures of that
sacred land amongst sheep
and cows and farm dogs I
met the ancients ones the
stone people the singing faeries
delighted in the water streams
thank you mother dear for your
trust in letting me go to nature
days and day spent wandering

Canada

The politics of Ottawa

mothers and fathers
 need a good wage
elders need housing
 and the poor fed

You waste time posturing and
scoring one upmanship
while the
children's bellies are hungry for a
good meal

Canada is alseep at the wheel
 and
the united nations are gathering

what sort of world you ask one
built on compassion
or one that
will make the third Reich

 look like
a tea party
oh foolish men wake up

Clutter

My mind is scrambled like my house
with endless clutter of experience
where to file I do not know now
perhaps a bonfire is the way
yes burn all the memories in the
easter fire  and begin a new
with windows clean and clear
write a book and place them
memories in neat rows of words
otherwise the rooms will fill
with nothing that makes sense
today I begin a new chapter
its spring and birds are singing
take all the pictures of the wall
paint new fresh white paint yes
white the color of clarity pure
decorate one wall of photos
begin clear clean glass like
Marlene has on her wall

Little death number four

A charlie horse close to my heart dear God no breath will go in
the pain is severe enough to call 911 and they came in tall men
all ten of them and they surrounded me with love caring love
asked questions put an oxygen mask over my mouth and nose
but oh oh the fear the fear to have to go so fast just go now
the plane is lifting off and their is not time for goodbye and
I am so so very afraid afraid of the door shutting on my life
right now right here in this hosptial of St Paul in Vancouver
yes Sheila Winifred Simpson -Brown died today in St Paul's
hospital at 11pm in the presence of her husband who held
her hand and she cried and cried for herself she just cried
herself to death and only minutes later she was in heaven

A short poem written in 1980 when I arrived

Oh Canada

Oh Canada

Can I Da ( Irish for father)

Will I be alone in your greatness
Like every other damn immigrant

Ontario winters nearly did me in
Froze my bones to the very core


Je vois la piscine pour les enfants
Swimming in a new charter of rights


Canada I am living in the winter
of your discontentment

Canada we will grow
together.

Red Canvas

Across the earth a canvas is drawn
It is the blood of nations slaughtered
human wasted like the the wind now
where is human peace red peace now
the mother earth is saturated with
the blood of her children lost in
the raw game of war and greed some
treat others like they do not count
whole tribes are wiped out in a day
oh blood of Africa I hear you sing
men go to the moon and you die of
the lack of a good meal it is wrong
water food shelter water food love
Africa Africa I hear your call now
Blood for oil and no one is happy

Blood

Red life force pumping love into soul
Blood life force represents the joy
Doctors are sure they are right and
have the answers for all problems
poke prod cut dissect remove parts
you won't need this gall bladder now
poke prod transfuse blood from another
Hemoglobin drops face becomes ghostly
Death is round the corner want to go
Hell no ! nurses sweet or cranky now
Doctors intolerant of any questions
God like the poke prod dissect mean
Oxygen memory love flow into bodies
The parking lot in full and they all
line up for blood to be taken or for
blood to be given here take some now
When I was nine my nose bleed forever
The ambulance man gathered me into a
soft blood red warm blanket comfort
In the metal rattling van driving
under a moonlit night I threw up
my own life force sticky red blood

red blood blank