new bairn
weanin -
muinlit serenade




new baby
suckling -
moonlit serenade

hoaspice veesit -
her furst staps
on a hinmaist rod




hospice visit -
her first steps
on a last road

muin leukin -
hungower
on muinsheen




moon viewing -
hungover
on moonshine

clear vause o roses -
deep in the watter
muckle breers




clear vase of roses -
deep in the water
magnified thorns

the oops-an-doons
o thair youthie lives
...skeetbrod perk




the ups-and-downs
of their young lives
...skateboard park

snip snip
makkin shroods
...sniper




snip snip
making shrouds
...sniper

a threesome
muinlichtin:
sin yirth muin




a trio
moonlighting:
sun earth moon

peerie tots at
rugby trainin -
faithers hunker dwaumin...




tiny-tots at
rugby training -
fathers sit dreaming...

on bygaun
cumulus cluds
maw-scarts




on passing
cumulus clouds
gull-scribbles

a deavance o snails
dunt an scrunt
...thair castanets




a plague of snails
bump and grind
...their castanets

mornin glory
tooters
while thrapplin the rose




morning glory
trumpets
whilst strangling the rose

fush-cadger's van
reekin o the sea -
maws in'ts wauk




fishmonger's van
smelling of the sea -
gulls in its wake

butterie -
ilka vaig
a daunce




butterfly -
every journey
a dance

wild-flooer seeds
fund in's pooch
...bydein resurrectioun




wild-flower seeds
found in his pocket
...awaiting resurrection

yin
bygaun thocht:
clud




one
passing thought:
cloud

picnic -
butterflies and
flies in the butter


(Winner CCK#52 (play on words)

granbairn
rins skirlin -
ghaists amang the waashin




grandchild
runs screaming -
ghosts amongst the washing

fremmit flooers -
a reid admiral
sattles on ma guidwife




exotic flowers -
a red admiral
settles on my wife

faither's bothy -
bottle scrievit 'weed killer'
reekin o fusky




father's hut -
bottle marked 'weed killer'
smelling of whisky

clessroom globe -
nebs gove oot
frae africae




classroom globe -
faces stare out
from africa

snails
on the mairch
laidit backpacks




snails
on the march
loaded backpacks

troot stream -
mey-flees jig
syne couk




trout stream -
may-flies dance
then disappear

doos on the ruiflicht
me
thair unnerwatter bogle




pigeons on the rooflight
I
their underwater monster

bairgin
wi a bygaun thocht
butterie




colliding
with a passing thought
butterfly

campanula -
sparks hingin
sea blae




campanula -
raindrops hanging
sea blue

in the backlans
skailt confetti -
new-wad's gairden




in the ghetto
scattered confetti -
newly-wed's garden

lichtnin -
stappin frae a clud
a crofter wi's hey-sned




lightning -
stepping from a cloud
a hill-farmer with his scythe

in the winnock
an attercap's wab
...he hauds up her lung x-ray




in the window
a spider's web
...he holds up her lung x-ray

flicht hindert -
oors tentie o
crans' aerobatics




flight delayed -
hours watching
swifts' aerobatics

aw day
the pyned rairs
as the auld aik dees




all day
the agonized roars
as the old oak dies

murtherer bawdrons
contert -
bleckie awes me a sang




killer cat
thwarted -
blackbird owes me a song

amissin bairn  -
the mither:
fingers daffin wi fingers




missing child  -
the mother:
fingers playing with fingers

furst mappie
o the year
...wrocht o cluds




first rabbit
of the year
...made of clouds

mornin blues  -
in a neuk
attercap thrums a threid




morning blues  -
in a corner
spider strums a thread

peerie fleein draigon
brucken awa
...butterie




little kite
broken free
...butterfly

alang wi voar
her herr
growein back agane




along with spring
her hair
growing back again

Guid Friday -
cruciform a maw snuves
athort the lift




Good Friday -
cruciform a gull glides
across the sky

sica  lang weir...
her herr
a'ready in pleats




such a long war...
her hair
already in pigtails

agin the derk
skinklin ploom flourish -
splairge o luve




against the dark
glittering plum blossom -
splash of love

howkin throuch
thair coats -
bummer amang gean flourish




rummaging through
their petticoats -
bee among cherry blossom

the auld pipie
chisty nou
pipie an pipes'r yin




the old piper
bronchial now
piper and bagpipes are one

plooin tyme -
the slawly turnin
yirth




ploughing time -
the slowly turning
earth

Flanders puppies:
shivereens o sinlicht
...queeverin




Flanders poppies:
smithereens of sunlight
...quivering


(W.W.1 1914-2014)

hert-sair weedae
preein the sea
in's duddies




grief-stricken widow
tasting the sea
in his clothes

in'r goonie
the cailleach
croons tae the swan




in her nightgown
the old lady
sings to the swan

waddin
gean flourish
squirls an frulls




wedding
cherry blossom
flounces and frills

i the bombed kirk
a bairn
...skailt chalice




in the bombed church
a child
...spilt chalice

daffins
appenin
...ettlin tae croon




daffodils
opening
...wanting to sing

voar
slawly daubs colour
...spleitert palette




spring
slowly dabs colour
...spattered palette

frae the quate
buds
dunch athort the thrashel




from the silence
buds
ease across the threshold

nicht fushin -
quarter muin's
siller preen




night fishing -
crescent moon's
silver hook

voar -
throuch gray vennels
a reid bike




spring -
through grey streets
a red bicycle

Mardi Gras -
burd-brods
thrang




Mardi Gras -
bird-tables
crowded

maw skirl
i the ceetie -
swaws o greenin




gull cry
in the city -
waves of longing

snawdraps
as on yer waddin day -
time's ayebydand bob




snowdrops
as on your wedding day -
time's eternal posy

awbodie's bodie
draps a note -
wuns back his blateness




ten times champion
fluffs a note -
wins back his modesty

on the pianny
a vause o daffins
...skimmerin Chopin




on the piano
a vase of daffodils
...shimmering Chopin

(mainich daily news)

nicht puil -
fush hove
tae crottles o sterns




night pool -
fish rise
to crumbs of stars


(Mainichi Daily News)

granfaither
babby-settin -
bairn goos'm ower




grandfather
baby-sitting -
baby croodles him asleep

sparks hing on brainches -
throuch-licht's spectrum
flourishes




raindrops hang on branches -
through-light's spectrum
blossoms

brennin his auld lair -
reek's thrawins
o luve an daith




burning his old bed -
smoke's writhings
of love and death

fusslin wund
fashless -
cowpt lums




whistling wind
unconcerned -
toppled chimneys

refugee camp  -
bairn's snawmen
haud forrit




refugee camp -
children's snowmen
undefeated

burthday balloon
little-boukit -
granfaither's braith gane




birthday balloon
deflated -
grandfather's breath gone

a fitbaw...
an sodgers an bairns
are yin




a football...
and soldiers and children
are one

snell -
maggies'
chitterin claiver




bitter cold -
magpies'
chittering chatter

in a cage
o scabbit brainches
a tweedlin burd




in a cage
of leafless branches
a singing bird


(holocaust day)

voar bulbs
boo tae the licht
...bleckies tae




spring bulbs
bend to the light
...blackbirds too

on the strand
daw-pentit
chuckies




on the shore
dawn-painted
pebbles

a murther
craws
gaitherin




a murder
crows
gathering

radgie
saw nebs
...hern leuks conflummixt




randy
goosanders
...heron looks shocked

circus saison -
reid rab
peerie lowe-chower




circus season -
the robin
little fire-eater

hungert bairn
liggs in'r lap
...derk concerteeny




starving child
lies in her lap
...dark concertina

hern an me -
oor harns
collin ilk ither




heron and I -
our brains
shaping each other

midden stramash -
maws, fite spatrils
craws, bleck




rubbish-tip cacophony -
gulls, white notes
crows, black

nuns gairdnin -
flooers
drookit in lauchter




nuns gardening -
flowers
drenched in laughter

anither towmond -
weir skaiths
aye dreepin




a new year -
war wounds
still dripping

in a bombed kirk
a bairn
...skailt chalice




in a bombed church
a child
...spilt chalice

TROKE DAY -
an airlie bang up
fir the hameless chiel




SALES DAY -
an early rise
for the homeless man

burn in spate -
deuks jookin
aneath the brig




flooded stream -
ducks ducking
beneath the bridge

yule carols
droont oot:
ferris wheelers' skirls




Christmas carols
drowned out:
ferris wheelers' screams

Yule EEN -
the hostel
fou o yin-time santas




Christmas Eve -
the hostel
full of one-time santas

fou muin -
skeetchers sloom
in tranquility




full moon -
skaters glide
in tranquility

nippie hailstanes -
the guitarist's
blae fingers




stinging hailstones -
the guitarist's
blue fingers

the bodach pensefu -
leaves rowe
throuch the years




the old man musing -
leaves roll
through the years

maws fecht ower the bucket
...hameless
he squerrs's shouthers




gulls fight over the dustbin
...homeless
he squares his shoulders

derk roarie day -
no a mensefu burd
tae be gliskit




dark roaring day -
not a sensible bird
to be seen

roon the wa's
faimlie photies
takkin tent o's deein




round the walls
family photographs
watching him die

faither's tree -
speirin oot ma life
alang'ts brainches




father's tree -
tracing my life
along its branches

scuil bairns
settin aff bulbs
...voartime nebs




school children
planting bulbs
...springtime faces

keek o day -
reid rab dookin
watter slawly reiddenin




sunrise -
a robin bathing
water slowly reddening

oot frae the baurber
wund roon ma lugs
...throuch scabbit brainches




out from the barber
wind round my ears
...through bare branches

geese
winnin awa
...a dowie owercum




geese
leaving
...a sad refrain

hielant kye -
weet dreeps frae the taps
o thair horns




highland cattle -
rain drips from the tips
of their horns

cauld mornin -
the eesock
maks me caulder




cold morning -
the dipper
makes me colder

forleetit ferm -
ploo,hey-sned,fa'n aipples
roostin




abandoned farm -
plough,scythe,fallen apples
rusting

the fiddlie's
shot fingers -
jeegs slawed tae waltzes




the fiddler's
arthritic fingers -
jigs slowed to waltzes

hielant veesit -
traikit a'ready
o wattergaws




highland visit -
weary already
of rainbows

rememberance preachin -
oot frae the lown
a bairn's greet




rememberance service -
out from the silence
a baby's cry

druckenly hingin
freest gnappit
begonias




drunkenly draped
frost bitten
begonias