LEAVING

Quietly down to earth
From somewhere above
Where you once reigned
Majestically

To be trampled
Discarded and forsaken
But still admired
Occasionally

Yet only for a season
When your short life is remembered
In a reminiscent sort of way
Affectionately

But the hope you gave
And the future you secured
Through your death is forgotten
Conveniently

And in the beauty of your sacrifice
Out of the darkness and loneliness
A new beginning springs forth
Joyfully

So may others see as I have seen
Or listen to my witness
And understand why it had to happen
Lovingly

Hopefully

ST STEPHEN'S GREEN

St Stephen's Green

A place of solitude
And simplicity
Where some take the first steps
To their dreams
While others
Tread the daily path from reality
At a preordained time
Or in response to
Their physical cravings
Where men hide their poverty
Behind fading suits and once smart shoes
And young mothers talk excitedly to an invisible friend
Without a hint of embarrassment


St Stephen's Green
A garden of languages
And loneliness
Where courtship rituals
Among the feathered visitors
Are mirrored
Along the fountain edges and garden seats
And love's desire is undermined by
The more pressing need
For an opportunist lunch
Where an overweight boy
Sits uncomfortably with his thoughts
And a thousand faces listen
To their own private world


St Stephen's Green
A fountain of youth
And agelessness
Where a million footsteps
Begin and end
Passing, unnoticed
In the busyness of hoping for
A moment's relaxation in paradise
Yet watching the lives of others appear
And disappear in a moment of time
Is a reminder of our greater journey
Where Paradise is the ultimate garden
Not just a temporary residence
Like St Stephen's Green

MIRROR IMAGE

When I look

I don't see what you see
Everything's different
I can only imagine
What you see
And wonder
If it's really
A true reflection
Of me
Or do you see
What I want you to
I can only imagine
It's the same for me
Looking at you
On reflection

DEATHLESSNESS

To live for ever and ever
Without the thought of dying
No more worry about son or father
Or the sound of a mother crying
Where moments are no longer confined
And pain and illness can't invade
While age no longer matters
And wills are never made
To live for ever and ever
On days when life seems brief
When the past outlives the future
And medication brings some relief
When every moment is so valuable
For extra years we now strive
But in our everlasting search we miss
The hope of eternal life

To live for ever and ever
Is a gift we don't deserve
But deathlessness is by our choice
Depending on whom we serve
In moments when we stop to think
It's good to remember why
For us to live for ever
Meant God's Son had to die

MOSES

I suppose I seemed reluctant
That the God who could have His way
In an instant
Should pick the most unsuitable of men
To lead His people out of slavery again
And defeat a tyrant

I suppose I never expected
That the God whom my mother worshipped
But Egyptians rejected
Would call me from a burning bush
And leave me with no excuse
But to become His elected

I suppose I should have known better
That the God who is our guide and friend
And our Creator
Would never accept the excuse I made
To choose spomeone else instead
As liberator

I suppose you should understand
That the God who parted the Red Sea
With His hand
Sometimes looks beyond church and steeple
To bring His message to the people
About the promised land