Confessions Of Chrysthete XII

CONFESSIONS OF CHRYSTHETE XII

something stirs
in your body
then it clicks
in your head

another case
of déjà vu
.

© Gerald England

Composed: Maleme, 30th September 2006

Unpublished

Cretan Morning

CRETAN MORNING

Ten in the morning:
birds sing in the trees
above the whirr of a wood-cutting machine.

Every so often the loud cry
of cockle-doodle-doo;
someone is hammering,
traffic roars on the main road
children’s voices can be heard.

The cock pierces the air again
and the quiet cacophony continues
as a dog barks.

© Gerald England

Composed: Maleme, 30th September 2006

Unpublished

Confessions Of Chrysthete XI

CONFESSIONS OF CHRYSTHETE XI

she is
unconfident,
lacking in courage
and envious
of the stout-headed poppy
shouting at the sun

© Gerald England

Composed: Maleme, 30th September 2006

Publication

2011 Snakeskin (Internet)

(x5)

water-drops
glisten on the surface
the leaf smells sweet

© Gerald England

Composed: Maleme, 30th September 2006

Unpublished

Confessions of Chrysthete X

CONFESSIONS OF CHRYSTHETE X

talking
to a kind stranger
we leave our life's baggage at home,
share one secret thought

briefly unladen
we open

inner joy

© GERALD ENGLAND

Composed: Maleme, 29th September 2006

Unpublished

(x4)

ancient walls
between its crevices
purple flowers

© GERALD ENGLAND

Composed: Maleme, 29th September 2006

Unpublished

Confessions of Chrysthete IX

CONFESSIONS OF CHRYSTHETE IX

a harsh critic
silenced her
she swallowed the words inside her
till they boiled


© GERALD ENGLAND

Composed: Maleme, 29th September 2006

Unpublished

Confessions of Chrysthete VIII

CONFESSIONS OF CHRYSTHETE VIII

night of no sleep
afloat above a sea of faces
beckoning

© GERALD ENGLAND

Composed: Maleme, 29th September 2006

Unpublished

Confessions of Chrysthete VII

CONFESSIONS OF CHRYSTHETE VII

in the darkest forest
my dead father
shines
a torch

i see my mother
from before i was born


© GERALD ENGLAND

Composed: Maleme, 29th September 2006

Unpublished

(x3)

something scurries
deep in the olive grove
but we do not see

© GERALD ENGLAND

Composed: Maleme, 28th September, 2006

Unpublished

Confessions of Chrysthete VI

CONFESSIONS OF CHRYSTHETE

VI


how can I ever be alone
with the wind in my face,
the sea at my foot,
the crickets in the bush at night,
a snake or a dog to stroke
and my love by my side?

© GERALD ENGLAND

Composed: Maleme, 28th September, 2006

Unpublished

(x2)

strewn
under autumn leaves
seeds of spring

© Gerald England

Composed: Maleme, 28th September 2006

Unpublished

(x1)

tall sycamores
way way up above
a glimmer of light

© Gerald England

Composed: Maleme, 28th September 2006

Unpublished

Confessions of Chrysthete V

Confessions of Chrysthete V

© Gerald England

Composed: Maleme, 28th September 2006

Unpublished

Confessions of Chrysthete IV

Confessions of Chrysthete IV

© Gerald England

Composed: Maleme, 28th September 2006

Unpublished

Confessions of Chrysthete III

Confessions of Chrysthete III

© Gerald England

Composed: Maleme, 28th September 2006

Unpublished

Confessions of Chrysthete II

Confessions of Chrysthete II

today's dawn
always a little bit different
from yesterday

© Gerald England

Composed: Maleme, 28th September 2006

Unpublished

Confessions of Chrysthete I

Confessions of Chrysthete I

© Gerald England

Composed: Maleme, 28th September 2006

Unpublished

(y26)

Photograph © Gerald England: view original
autumn breeze
our neighbour's sunflowers
sway

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 16th September 2006

Published

2006 Falling Leaves

(as10 Pluto)

(PLUTO…)

only eight now
it might have been twelve or more
certainly not nine

© Gerald England

Publication

2006 Meetings in Dejhagascar (Internet)

(y25)

fat magpie
sitting on the fence
autumn wind

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 21st August 2006

Publication

2006 Falling Leaves (Internet)

(as9)

rainfall on rocks
the constituency of each
changes with space

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 16th August 2006

Publication

2006 Meetings in Dejhagascar (Internet)

(y23)

sun out a magpie waits in the willow

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 7th August 2006

Publication

2006 Falling Leaves (Internet)

(y23)

autumn gale
the rosebush knocks
on my window

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 1st August 2006

Publication

2006 Falling Leaves (Internet)

(y21)

cooler night
i fetch the duvet
from its cupboard

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 31st July 2006

Publication

2006 Summer Haiku (Internet)

(as8)

thunder moon
rats scurry for cover
along the deck

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 11th July 2006

Publications

2006 Summer Haiku (Internet)
2006 Meetings in Dejahagascar (Internet)

*****bubuit de luna
sobolani tasnesc spre adapost
de-a lungul puntii

Gerald England

-Romanian translation by
Andrei Dorian Gheorghe-

Publication

2006 SARM (Internet)

(y19)

cruise end
behind a black container
the sun sets

© Gerald England

Composed: North Sea, 23rd June 2006

Unpublished

(as7)

morning moon
the flat sky stretches
to a still sea

© Gerald England

Composed: St Petersburg, 18th June 2006

Publication

2006 Meetings in Dejhagascar (Internet)

(y18)

on the dockside
rows of rolled steel
wait under cranes

© Gerald England

Composed: St Petersburg, 17th June 2006

Unpublished

(y16)

nestled
beneath the old depot
a small lighthouse

© Gerald England

Composed: Nynesham, 15th June 2006

Unpublished

(y15)

departing liner -
from the halted ro-ro
hands wave

© Gerald England

Composed: Warnemunde, 13th June 2006

Unpublished

(y14)

after the noon
changing of the guard
a rush for icecream

© Gerald England

Composed: Copenhagen, 12th June 2006

Publication

2007 Blithe Spirit (UK)

(y13)

harbour entrance
a ladybird lands
on my wrist

© Gerald England

Composed: Copenhagen, 12th June 2006

Publication

2006 Summer Haiku (Internet)
2006 World Kigo Database (Internet)

(y12)

our uncut lawn
all along the edge
buttercups

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 30th May 2006

Publication

2006 Summer Haiku (Internet)

(as6)

low sunlight
north martian winter
a bumby boulder

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 20th May 2006

Publication

2006 Meetings in Dejhagascar (Internet)

*****lumina scazuta
iarna martiana nordica
un bulgare accidentat

Gerald England

Romanian translation by Andrei Dorian Gheorge

Publication

2006 SARM (Internet)

(y11)

shrivelled daffodils
under the willows' shade:
dandelions bloom

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 27th April 2006

Publication

2006 Summer Haiku (Internet)

(p21)

trees drip drain overflows the open road

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 19th April 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(p20)

Easter Sunday in the potting-shed cowslips

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 16th April 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(p12)

spring moves too fast easter so soon upon us

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 12th April 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(as5)

April arrival
the descent upon Venus
fraught with danger

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 9th April 2006

Publication

2006 Meetings at Dejagascar (Internet)

(as4)

post-eclipse
in the afternoon dawn
frogs croak

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 9th April 2006

Publication

2006 Cosmopoetry (Internet)

Snap - April 5th 2006

SNAP - APRIL 5th 2006

the new clock
on the reconstructed
mini-roundabout
is stuck at twenty to nine

rescued from the fallen tower
of the rubber factory
demolished in favour
of an estate of yuppie houses
its four faces
seem forlorn

in the taxi
returning from the supermarket
the first bee of the year
buzzes lethargically
unthreatening
this cold spring day

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 5th April 2006

Unpublished

(p18)

chopped a neighbour's tree the cherry remains

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 4th April 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(y10)

town hall steps three frozen pickets protest the rain

© Gerald England

Composed: Hyde, 28th March 2006

Publication

2011 A Hundred Gourds (Internet)

(p17)

overnight rain two dozen daffodils finally sprung

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 27th March 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(p16)

spring forward an hour and another hour to change them all

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 25th March 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(p15)

somewhere in the memory a green field

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 22nd March 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(p14)

today tentative steps towards ...

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 19th March 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(as3)

almost spring
the moon at apogee
snow on daffodils

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 16th March 2006

Publication

2006 Meetings in Dejhagascar (Internet)

*****aproape primavera
luna la apogeu
zapada pe narcise

Gerald England
in Romaneste de Andrei Dorian Gheorghe

Unpublished?

Yorkshire haiku 12

t' old allotment
diggin early tatties
granddad sweats

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 16th March 2006

Publication

2012 Yorkshire Dialect Society Summer Bulletin (UK)

Yorkshire haiku 11

shufflin dahn t' prom
wi a bag o fish an chips -
vinegary kisses

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 16th March 2006

Publication

2012 Yorkshire Dialect Society Summer Bulletin (UK)

Yorkshire haiku 10

New Year's Day
a bud unfurls itsen
on t' cyclamen

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 16th March 2006

Unpublished

Yorkshire haiku 9

Kessmus day
thru r' cemetery raihlins
holly berries poak

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 16th March 2006

Unpublished

Yorkshire haiku 8

stuck i' a jam
lass chucks t' roahd atlas
aht a t' sunroof

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 16th March 2006

Publication

2012 Yorkshire Dialect Society Summer Bulletin (UK)

Yorkshire haiku 7

warmh October
cahncil sweeper cleears leeaves
t' wind blahs em back

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 16th March 2006

Unpublished

(p13)

spring clean in the garden muck remains

© Gerald England

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(p12)

yellow and blue two little crocuses by the church wall

© Gerald England

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(p11)

keeping her head down march winds

© Gerald England

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(p10)

before leaving a last pint at the "swan-with-two-necks"

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 5th March 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(p9)

openly looking for spring here there

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 3rd March 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(p8)

under willow St. David's Day a sign

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 1st March 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(p7)

shopping village cold rain beats down down

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 27th February 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(p6)

February tree rat on neighbour's fence

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 21st February 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(p5)

spring morning worms are where the ouzel waits

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 22nd February 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku

Hiding Place

HIDING PLACE

From his hiding place
he looks through a window
where snow flurries flicker
forming the logo for
agoraphobics anonymous.

No car sits now
on the cracked-up drive
ready to be leapt into
and driven for miles
into the hills for escape

He wanders the world
punching postcodes
into Google Earth
or planning a route
from Tblinsk to Timbuktu.

Deleting countless spams
filling the dishwasher
updating the anti-virus
microwaving lunch
all necessary chores.

Yet once in a while
intrepid he flees away
finds another sun
digitally captures
colours and moods.

And on his return
shares moments of rapture
with the thousands
who hide behind
their own little windows.

© GERALD ENGLAND

Composed: Gee Cross, 22nd February 2006

Publication

2011 Envoi (UK)

(p3) as the yokel said to the tourist

as the yokel said to the tourist

if you want to get there
you shouldn't really start
from here!

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 20th February 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku

(p2)

out of Manchester spring is ahead somewhere

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 20th February 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(p1)

spring fever
leads to hiccoughs
unthinking

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 20th February 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku

(tn15)

island marina where the ships don't pass wild flowers

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 17th February 2006

Publication

2006 Ukku Spring Haiku (Internet)

(tn14)

conveyor belt
a horde of humans pass
the penguins watch

© Gerald England

Composed: Reina Sofia, 8th February 2006

Unpublished

(tn13)

red sailboat at the side of the motorway by a bus stop

© Gerald England

Composed: Abede, 7th February 2006

Publications

2006 The Sons of Camus Writers International (Canada)
2007 Ackworth born, gone West (Internet)

(tn12)

overcoats strewn on hotel lobby cases the weather back home

© Gerald England

Composed: Playa de las Americas, 7th February 2006

Publication

2007 Ackworth born, gone West (Internet)

(tn11)

February night
next to the tropical moon
Mars clearly

© Gerald England

Composed: Playa de las Americas, 5th February 2006

Publication

2006 Time Haiku (UK)
2006 Meetings in Dejhagascar (Internet)

*****
Noapte-n februarie
langa Luna tropicala
Marte clar

-Gerald England (U.K.)-

(in romaneste de Andrei Dorian Gheorghe)

Publication

2006 Festivalul de Cosmopoezie (Internet)

(tn10)

hillside terraces hang uncultivated between land-slips

© Gerald England

Composed: Las Portelas, 5th February 2006

Publication

2007 Ackworth born, gone West (Internet)

(tn9)

among dunes across the old crater snow and stones

© Gerald England

Composed: El Portillo, 5th February 2006

Publications

2006 Time Haiku (UK)
2007 Ackworth born, gone West (Internet)

(tn8)

forest of fir
looking down on white cloud
a pine cone falls

© Gerald England

Composed: Vilafor, 5th February 2006

Publication

2006 The Sons of Camus Writers International (Canada)

(tn7)

the two girls lay down towels to claim their poolside places

© Gerald England

Composed: Playa de las Americas, 5th February 2006

Unpublished

(tn6)

on the roof outside the nudist zone topless sunbathers

© Gerald England

Composed: Playa de las Americas, 4th February 2006

Publications

2006 The Sons of Camus Writers International (Canada)
2007 Ackworth born, gone West (Internet)
2007 Ginyu (Japan)

(tn5)

skateboard park iron bars at the entrance to the church

© Gerald England

Composed: Playa de las Americas, 4th February 2006

Publications

2006 The Sons of Camus Writers International (Canada)
2007 Ackworth born, gone West (Internet)

(tn4)

country music club
across from its burnt-out shell
a hedge of purple

© Gerald England

Composed: Playa de las Americas, 4th February 2006

Publication

2006 The Sons of Camus Writers International (Canada)

(tn3)

purple flowers opposite burnt-out remains of mini-golf

© Gerald England

Composed: Playa de las Americas, 4th February 2006

Publication

2007 Ackworth born, gone West (Internet)

(tn2)

two palm tree a ladies old bicycle parked between

© Gerald England

Composed: Playa de las Americas, 1st February 2006

Publications

2006 Time Haiku (UK)
2007 Ackworth born, gone West (Internet)

(tn1)

lift music wafts down the corrider into our rooms

© Gerald England

Composed: Playa de las Americas, 4th February 2006

Publication

2007 Ackworth born, gone West (Internet)

(as1)

Ogling a cold earth
twenty-thousand light years off
in the Milky Way

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 26th January 2006

Publication

2006 Meetings in Dejhagascar (Internet)

*****
ochind un pamant rece
doua's'demii ani-lumina-n
Calea Lactee

-Gerald England (U.K.)-

(in romaneste de Andrei Dorian Gheorghe)

Publication

2006 Festivalul de Cosmopoezie (Internet)

Haibun 060125 (y3-y9)

As I walk through the cemetery on my way to the dentist, I notice several yellow triangular signs
this memorial
is unsafe -- do not tamper
with its support
and elsewhere
gravestones laid flat
lest they fall upon
the living
As I step smartly on I ponder if I'm early or late for my appointment but
the town hall clock
is stuck on half past eight
today or last night?
The dentist has finally acceded to the directive of over a year ago that all businesses should be made accessible to mobility impaired clients
climbers are warned
of the presence of a stair-lift
still cardboard-wrapped
After the dentist I go shopping in the supermarket
the check-out girl
puts too many heavy items
into a single bag
On the way home
traffic-lights down
drivers look out for each other
vehicles flow freely
The taxi-driver answers my earlier query. Parts of the town centre have been without electricity since last night. He tells me about a town in Holland where they have removed all traffic lights and road markings. The traffic is flowing 30% more freely than before!
a loose melon
rolls out of its plastic bag
as the taxi corners

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 25th January 2006

Unpublished

(y1)

toasting the new year
with a glass of last year's wine
and a mince pie

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 1st January 2006

Unpublished

Waiting Backwards

WAITING BACKWARDS

zealously guarding his innermost thoughts
yellow crocuses in a vase
xeroxing plans for a party
winter storms keep the ferry in port
vacuuming the carpet her latest fetish
under lock and key his collection of used underwear
tempted by the salesman's offer

surrendering her endowment policy
resolving the argument in adjacent beds
quaint tearoom serves hard cake
preparing for work the stripper gets all dressed up
only one customer through the door of the pub with no beer
neon lights above the bordello
master cueman escapes the snooker
licking his lips at the bride's first meal
kingfisher hovers over the motorway
january sales brings traffic gridlock
in the gallery next to the nude a portrait of mary
holy mountain hell for climbers
gulls wheel behind the cruise liner
fog-bound passengers phone their loved ones
early morning terrier barks at the milkman
dreading the needle a middle-aged man shivers
caught short the little girl squirms mother looks cross
blue flowers in a vase are starting to wilt
always the long wait to see the doctor

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 31st December 2005

Publication

2006 Shadow Train (Internet)

(n30)

blue shimmer
within the holly hedge
a discarded bike

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 25th December 2005

Unpublished

(n29)

Christmas day
through the cemetery railings
holly with berries

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 25th December 2005

Unpublished

Mid-December

MID-DECEMBER

A full moon shines
over the morning frost;
the lanes are full of late-fallen leaves;
walking across the mulch
is almost as tricky
as treading over ice.

In town the carol-singers are in
crowding the shopping-mall,
while a group of muffled musicians
play by the outside market.

This year but two robins
on the early christmas cards;
the squirrel still runs along the fence
skirting our newly-erected shed.

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 17th December 2005

Publication

2007 Famous Poets and Poems (Internet)
2008 The Seventh Quarry (UK)
2008 Poem of the Day Podcast (Internet)
2008 Canada Pine (Internet) [unauthorised publication]
2009 God's Own Country (Internet) [unauthorised publication]
2010 Nordinho (Internet) [unauthorised publication]
2010 Bradwell Bugle (Internet) [pdf file] [unauthorised publication]
2010 The Real Handbag Shop blog (Internet) [unauthorised publication]
2010 Metro Run & Walk (Internet) [unauthorised publication]
2010 NorthWest Native Plant Journal (Internet) [pdf file] [unauthorised publication]
2011 Today with J P Ronan (Internet) [unauthorised publication]
2011 Within 4 hours reach (Internet) [unauthorised publication]
2012 Your Daily Poem (Internet)

There are several other unauthorised publications to be found on the internet - several sites have cloned all the work on the Famous Poets site. Some of those sites appear to harbour malware.

(n26)

a mile away
the roar of the crowd
at the match

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 26th November 2005

Unpublished

(n25)

a curled cat
on the car's bonnet
frosty afternoon

© Gerald England

Composed: Gee Cross, 26th November 2005

Unpublished

(n21)

still tasting
the whale-meat pizza
in Nuuk

Composed: Gee Cross, 20th September 2005

Unpublished

(n20)

5p coin on ground
I pause briefly decide
not worth bending

© Gerald England

Composed: Hyde, 16th September 2005

Unpublished

(n19)

pip's coffee house
pert-breasted waitress
wipes the table

© Gerald England

Composed: Callander, 7th September 2005

Unpublished

(n18)

on the cobblestones
of the riverside path
a white feather

© Gerald England

Composed: Callander, 4th September 2005

Publications

2005 Poetry Scotland (Internet)
2006 Haiku Hikes (Internet)
2016 CALLANDER HAIKU (Callander, Diehard)

(n17)

ducks ripple
through an alder's reflection
babies follow

© Gerald England

Composed: Callander, 4th September 2005

Publications

2005 Poetry Scotland (Internet)
2006 Haiku Hikes (Internet)
2016 CALLANDER HAIKU (Callander, Diehard)

(n16)

Ben Ledi
ignored by Munro-baggers
low mist

© Gerald England

Composed: Callander, 4th September 2005

Publications

2005 Poetry Scotland (Internet)
2006 Haiku Hikes (Internet)
2016 CALLANDER HAIKU (Callander, Diehard)

(n15)

how many bells?
low walls and distant hills
echo back

© Gerald England

Composed: Callander, 4th September 2005

Publications

2005 Poetry Scotland (Internet)
2006 Haiku Hikes (Internet)
2016 CALLANDER HAIKU (Callander, Diehard)

(n14)

prodigal daughter
barbecues aubergines
blue smoke

© Gerald England

Composed: Callander, 3rd September 2005

Publications

2005 Poetry Scotland (Internet)
2006 Haiku Hikes (Internet)