toon crier
his muckle wame
whaur he hains's vice




town crier
his huge stomach
where he keeps his voice

leaves breenge
towarts me:
wuid scartin




leaves race
towards me:
mad scratching

his concertina
gaitherin stour
jigs hapt




his concertina
gathering dust
jigs enfolded

she maks-up:
in the keekin-gless
her corrie-haundit twin smirks




she makes-up:
in the mirror
her left-handed twin smiles

bricht mornin
maws whurlin
yin in ma teacup




bright morning
gulls wheeling
one in my teacup

snell day
haun in haun
gled she's weirin glivs




nippy day
hand in hand
glad she's wearing gloves

liggin cantie -
her braith
on ma rig




lying contented -
her breath
on my back

gean
sparks hingin
refleck Yule lichts




cherry tree
raindrops hanging
reflect Christmas lights

athort the perk
the crippilt chiel's trike:
its bockety trinnle




across the park
the handicapped man's tricycle:
its buckled wheel

the muin the nicht
seam a fingerbrod
whit a banjo!




the moon tonight
fit a fingerboard
what a banjo!


(after Sokan)

dour-faced shoppers
a gangrel croons
aneath Yule lichts




grim-faced shoppers
a tramp sings
beneath Christmas lights

heich i the brainches
a plastic baguette poke
giein the finger




high in the branches
a plastic baguette bag
giving the finger

droondit in maw leid
the towerists
skail orrals




drowned in gull language
the tourists
scatter scraps

rugby practeese
vices belloch
hern shaks weet frae' s neb




rugby practice
voices bellow
heron shakes rain from his beak

the crippilt lassie smirks -
a haud by a saicont time
tint




the handicapped girl smiles -
I pass by a second time
lost

reddin Yule lichts
ootby, the lift reids an blaes
wi'oot a wauchle




arranging Christmas lights
outside, the sky reds and blues
effortlessly

fantoosh fitwark
bleckies dumpin
thair wey throuch leaves




fancy footwork
blackbirds kicking
their way through leaves

chinese lassies geegle
ferrgrun lichts refleckit
i thair glesses




chinese girls giggle
fairground lights reflected
in their glasses

the skeetchers
birl an snuve
sheddaes o maws on the slidder




the skaters
spin and glide
shadows of gulls on the ice

in the het sinlicht
midgies hove up
in shooglie columns




in the warm sunlight
midges rise up
in shaky columns

throuch the weet
a dowie sang
clinks plash intae's cog




through the rain
a sad song
coins splash into his pail

reid claith ower the leerie
mak-on bordel
jazz gaitherin




red cloth over the lamp
make-believe bordello
jazz session

prood stag -
the-day yir antlers
sellt on a weet toon causey




proud stag -
today your antlers
sold on a wet city street

heft the tooter
pawt the valves
wunner:cud a yet...




lift the trumpet
finger the valves
wonder:could I still...

yule pairty
nae sae daft
he nicks's neebor's whuskie




Christmas party
not so senile
he steals his neighbour's whisky

wund i the lum
leaves
sweel




wind in the chimney
leaves run
in circles

staunin stanes
stappin tae refleck
a gled hings




standing stones
stopping to reflect
a hawk hangs

licht smirr
a roon the cunyie
mak a wattergaw




light drizzle
I round the corner
make a rainbow

doverin
feet tae the lowe
the warl gaes on




dozing
feet to the fire
the world goes on

the Yule whigmaleerie
fa'n frae the laft
aye hail an sheenin




the Christmas bauble
fallen from the loft
still whole and shining

in the quate o incaain
a stane fa's
ontae the kist




in the silence of prayer
a stone falls
onto the coffin

furst snaw on the braes
at the bus-stap
reid nebs




first snow on the hills
at the bus-stop
red faces

freest on the skeps
monks i thair chaumers
meditatin




frost on the hives
monks in their cells
meditating

sodgers ship oot -
new leaves
faw ontae deid yins




troops embark -
new leaves
fall onto dead ones

on the pendle:
sheddae
o the hinmaist flourish




on the pendulum:
shadow
of the last blossom

the sey wins in
baits heave up
rug at thair palls




the tide comes in
boats rise
tug at their moorings

soon o a bop tooter
wammles throuch the err
bleckies hearken




sound of a bop trumpet
wriggles through the air
blackbirds listen

Yule eerans
abuin a sey o nebs
a Rabbi haudin's bunnet




Christmas shopping
above a sea of faces
a Rabbi holding his hat

owernicht
the proteckin pailin's
fa'n intae the sheuch




overnight
the protection barrier's
fallen into the trench

physalis bowets
lowe sonsie lik -
the gairden's doon-toon en




physalis lanterns
glow warmly -
the garden's down-town end

throuch's toosilt baird
the gangrel smirks -
micht be santoka!




through his tousled beard
the tramp smiles -
might be santoka!

reid rabs, blue bonnets,
chackert maggies,
on yin nakit tree




red robins, blue-tits,
chequered magpies,
on one naked tree

dreich day
hern stauns i the weet
nae hause




wet day
heron stands in the rain
no neck

the bonnie leaves
hing blate i the licht
winnae faw gin a leuk awa




the beautiful leaves
hang shy in the light
won't fall until I look away

flutherin speuggie
refleckit on ma wa
muckle as a craw




fluttering sparrow
refleckted on my wall
big as a crow

the ferris wheel birls
skirlin sheddaes
forenent the muin




the ferris wheel turns
screaming shadows
against the moon

efter the blatter
fidgin i the gitter:
skeletal umberellae




after the storm
twitching in the gutter:
skeletal umbrella

on the altar
o the hinmaist sipper
a vawse o puppies




on the altar
of the last supper
a vase of poppies


(remembrance Sunday)

leaf-ens rax up
frae the weet peth
syne clap doon agen




leaf-ends struggle up
from the wet path
then fall back again

on the gantry
bottles blinkin
...santoka...his haiku




on the bar shelf
bottles shining
...santoka...his haiku

wund
leaves flee aw airts
the burdwatcher feels deezie




wind
leaves fly everywhere
the birdwatcher feels dizzy

heich wund
leaves tummle -
bricht mosaic burn




high wind
leaves tumble -
bright mosaic stream

oot reengin efter haiku
a runkilt broon yin
fell on me




out hunting haiku
a wrinkled brown one
fell on me

throuch the goalposts
a tuim pitch
stour-arred




through the goalposts
an empty pitch
battle-scarred

guisin nicht
ower langsyne
aye sowpin pumpkin bree




halloween over
long ago
still supping pumpkin soup

deuks quaik
hern keeks ower
the heichmaist sprots




ducks squawk
heron peeps over
the tallest reeds

ma slaistert peth
fou o bricht reid sterns
...acer castin




my messy path
full of bright red stars
...acer shedding

airtist apens's jotter
funds the wunter lift
a'ready on the page




artist opens his pad
finds the winter sky
already on the page

a rand o licht
ablow a sneckit door
...dayset




a strip of light
below a closed door
...sunset

wunter burdsang
skwurrel's rumple
conduckin




winter birdsong
squirrel's tail
conducting

hern, buddha-quate -
ma haingles hoast
sens'm oot ower the toon




heron, buddha-still -
my flu cough
sends him out over the town

daunce-ha dung doon
anely
the soond o the burn




dance-hall demolished
only
the sound of the stream

gairden grown-up
in's winnock:
VOTE GREEN




garden overgrown
in his window:
VOTE GREEN

freestit perks
kye nip at
peerie fuffs o stame




frosted fields
cattle nibble at
little puffs of steam

furst freest
anoraked bairns
wi nae hauns




first frost
anoraked children
with no hands

snell wund blawin
throuch taigilt breer:
sumthin's banes pikeit claen




cold wind blowing
through tangled briar:
something's bones picked clean

furst day
o freest
niver sae monie craws




first day
of frost
never so many crows

lavein herbour
lichts dwinin
the muin cums wi's




leaving harbour
lights receding
the moon comes with us

craws in a raw
collogue thegither
ower halloween




crows in a row
chatter together
planning halloween