First a birthday poem for my youngest son…

Ben’s 38

38 years since you were born
As with all
From a womb you were torn. 

A feisty child from the start
Weaving your way in
To many a heart. 

Life for you has been up and down
And too often 
You wear a frown. 

A sensitive soul I have found
Too often in life
Knocked to the ground. 

But deep within I can see
The resources you have 
To set yourself free. 

And I will remain 
A steadfast supporter 
An advocate for all you gain. 

Rolling with the punches life will throw
For with each challenge met,
All will watch you grow. 

Brian Matthews 1-1-24

For Ben’s birthday on 4-1-24

And then some Haiku

Unusual Times

The rain falls again 
Not like our normal summer -
And what comes next?

Brian Matthews 6-1-24

Petrichor 

The rain has just stopped
The streets and land now washed clean -
Such rich smells abound

Brian Matthews 6-1-24

And a poem that, I think, will resonate with many

Guilt 

Such an evil master 
Is guilt when we’ve erred
But to err is only human. 

And guilt a reflection 
Of our empathy for others 
Knowing how our actions hurt. 

But the main pain
Is to ourselves
Regret gnawing at our core. 

But lessons are learned
About the need for change 
Before we are overwhelmed. 

Steps taken in calm times
Inoculating against the fever
Of emotions spilling over. 

Knowing that there are those
Who have our backs
And can see past the troubled waters. 

Brian Matthews 6-1-24

Ryder’s 11

So, 11 today!
What can I say?
Have lots of fun
Out in the sun. 

Or, maybe, inside
With friends you’ll hide
Hope you have a joyful time
So my poem can rhyme 😀

Have a great one mate
Eat plenty of cake
Or not, if you like
Maybe ride a bike?

Brian Matthews 20-12-23

New Year

The first day of the new year
The sun shines brightly 
The chorus of birds sounds. 

What will this year bring?
I wonder sitting here
Hoping for the best, of course. 

Knowing no certainty can there be
The good mixing with the bad
Joyful moments interlaced with pain. 

One step after the other
Pausing for breaks
Resting when needed. 

Then forging ahead
Finding the next ‘sparkling moment’
Examining it carefully. 

For in the peaks
Evidence of the troughs appear
All of life connected. 

Uncertainty an element of life
That most of us would miss
If all became too bland. 

And yet, at times predictably 
Is a strong desire 
A need for order common. 

One thing is certain, though
Surprises there will be
As, again, the curtain lifts. 

Brian Matthews, 1-1-24

Sometimes, when I feel helpless, playing with words help me accept that, at times, there is little I can do to help a loved one, other than being there when needed.

Helplessness 

I feel so sad
And it won’t go away
Worrying about a loved one
Feeling my stomach lurch. 

It happens sometimes 
When there’s nothing you can do
To alleviate the pain of another 
Steer them to a clearer path. 

My heart is so sore
The cut feels so deep
And yet life goes on
Those unaffected cruising. 

As they should, of course,
One person’s pain cannot taint
The world for all around 
The sun rises then sets. 

Looking around at all to see
Knowing that for some life ends
While for others it just begins
From loss new growth emerges. 

Into the light leaving the dark behind
A glimmer can be seen
The signs of new hope
But never certainty. 

Brian Matthews 26-12-23

Walking the Dog

Off we go 
Down the street
Seeing the other dogs
Lots to greet. 

My grandson counting 
Your many wees 
And poos as well
Amongst the trees. 

The questions come
As they always do
About so many things
I have no clue. 

But there’s so much joy
In each little thing
Dogs and little children 
Such joy they bring. 

Brian Matthews 24-12-23

Limerence

Limerence, a word new to me
Apparently, coined in the 1970s
Describing an infatuated state. 

It captured my imagination 
Resonated in my heart 
Made me both sad and happy. 

Sadness from a random thought 
Wondering what it would be like
Never to have experienced this. 

When another person grips you
Seizing your imagination 
Preoccupying your thoughts. 

Happiness that I’ve had this pleasure 
The boundaries seeming limitless 
The hope that all will gell. 

Knowing as we all do
That such a state is finite 
Infatuation morphing as it will. 

Sometimes leading to a crest
And then a plummeting fall
Hopes dashed on sharp rocks. 

At others leading to firmer ground
A plateau gradually rising
A firmness in the shape of things. 

The sparkle in life
An ephemeral thing
Sought after by all. 

But solidity is also craved 
Certainty in what will be
Depth in shared experience. 

Brian Matthews 21-12-23

Thought I’d have a couple of poems that rhyme

Christmas comes once a year,
May this gift bring you cheer
And that you have a lovely day
As with your new toy you play. 

This time of year means so much
Memories of the past and such
But it can also be so sad for you
Loved ones lost making you blue. 

So share the love while you can
With everyone to a man
And women too, of course 
Without whom all would be worse. 

For Barbara (my wife) Christmas 2023

Christmas 2023

As Christmas approaches
I look outside
While inside the house
I continue to hide. 

These joyful times
Can be hard to take
As memories of our losses
Our hearts can break. 

But the only solution 
Or, so it seems 
Is to remember those loved
And all of their dreams. 

For nary a one
Would want us down
Instead of smiles
Wearing a frown. 

So just talk to them
A little for a while 
And joy you will detect
In a little pile. 

Not spilling over
Down the street
But still the happiness 
Will you greet. 

If you give it
Half a chance
With friends and family 
You can dance. 

Brian Matthews 21-12-23

100 today

You would have been 100 today
If your heart had not failed
Almost 35 years ago. 

Larger than life you were
To me as a child
A wise mentor later. 

So many of your words
Still resonate in my skull
‘Blood’s thicker than water’. 

A favourite saying
Amongst many others 
When a point you needed to make. 

‘Going to see a man about a dog’
Another common statement,
But we already had a dog!

Born in a different time
Australia’s population only a fraction 
Of what it is today. 

And even when you passed
Still less than two thirds
Of what it stands now.

So much has changed 
Since you were born
And since you left us. 

I wonder what you would think
Of the internet and mobile phones,
Much less ‘reality tv shows’?

I guess like all who are still here
You would have absorbed what you could 
The rest ‘going through to the keeper’. 

I still miss your gentle presence 
And your blustering when upset
Wise words still whisper in my ear. 

Brian Matthews  13-12-23

Rhyming 

Nothing rhymes with orange
Or, so it is said
But what about strange?

Could be a problem with fruit
Things that maybe
It is difficult to suit. 

How about lemon?
I think only if
You come from Yemen. 

But easy it is to rhyme with pear 
And nobody it is likely 
Will at you stare. 

Or even the common apple
As on your face
The light through the leaves does dapple. 

And then there is tangerine 
A tangy fruit
That is not often seen. 

And so it does go
Depending on how many fruits 
That one does know. 

Brian Matthews 6-12-23

Farewell 

Splayed on the ground
The galah on its back 
Covered in little black ants. 

No more will it soar
Through the blue skies
Tethered as it is to the soil. 

And so it goes in life
Too brief a time in the light
Before the dark rolls in. 

Those pink and gray feathers 
Lifting its body into the heavens
Until the living thread is cut. 

Did it have a partner?
Left bereft by the loss
Children now fully grown. 

The cycle of life continues 
Without the death of a generation 
There is no space for the next. 

Go in peace beautiful bird
Your job on Earth now complete 
Your spirit free to join the ether. 

Brian Matthews 8-12-23

Sitting with a different view 

Sitting with a different view
Thousands of twinkling lights 
One of them an incoming jet. 

A very quiet night
The gums outside reaching 
For life I suppose. 

No noise from the kids
Or did I just hear the sounds
Movement for sure. 

It isn’t late but still
I’ll probably go to bed
After sitting with a different view. 

Brian Matthews 1-12-23