snail in's shall

aw day

...this dinsome neebour

snail in his shell

all day

...this noisy neighbour

voar dichtin  -

attercap mizzlin

intae the vacuum

spring cleaning  -

spider disappearing

into the vacuum

the maple tree

streetchin

chappin it the door

the maple tree

stretching

knocking at the door

watterside dander

atween

twa lifts

riverside walk

between

two skies

hinmaist day  -

on the strand tourists

coontin thair bawbees

last day  -

on the beach tourists

counting their coins

spanish Mass  -

the priest alowe

ceilin fans birlin...lift aff!

spanish Mass  -

the priest on fire

ceiling fans spinning...lift off!

jazz i the perk  -

a braw tenor sax

seelensce't the rooster

jazz in the park  -

a beautiful tenor sax

silenced the cockerel

 the skinklin sea  -

doon bi the harbour

the landit catch skinklin

the glittering sea  -

down by the harbour

the landed catch glittering

airlie mornin rooster

ma fere

...on weekdays!

early morning cockerel  -

my friend

...on weekdays!

 the crippelt laddie's draigon

rives

it his hert

the disabled boy's kite

tugs

at his heart

a suddent shooer

his colourfou umberellae

...a wattergaw

a sudden shower

his colourfull umbrella

...a rainbow

gean tree

fifty year auld  -

a stoup o stoor

cherry tree

fifty years old  -

a pillar of dust

lown mornin  -

pish-the-bed clocks

bydin...

calm morning  -

dandelion clocks

waiting...

slawly abuin the palin

peerie nebs

...aipple flourish

slowly above the fence 

tiny faces

...apple blossom

ah sned the furst sway  -

butterie chacks

it fir strauchtness

I cut the first swathe  -

butterfly checks

it for straightness

sweelin wund  -

gean tree

flamenco

swirling wind  -

cherry tree

flamenco

throuch the steadin

a speuggie

its neb fou o strae

through the building site

a sparrow

its beak full of straw

unner the tree

a tuim shoppin cairt

fouin wi fawin fruct

under the tree

an empty shopping trolley

filling with falling fruit

new maisic  -

days o weet

hiv chynged the burn's souch

new music  -

days of rain

have changed the stream's tone

blue bonnets in an oot

o the auld post boax

...a deleevery suin?

blue tits in and out

of the old post box

...a delivery soon?

yoga cless  -

a bummer's equal-aqual

on a flooer's heid

yoga class  -

a bee balances

on a flower's head

the african  lassie

feshes a glintin smirk

tae a dreich day

the african girl

fetches a gleaming smile

to a dull wet day

the bodach an the bummer

rist a whilie  - syne yoke tae

gairdenin 

the old man and the bee

rest a while  -  then set to

gardening 

muinlicht

skailt on the brainches

peer flourish

moonlight

scattered on the branches

pear blossom

oot frae the chippy

a bodach  -

sheddae o a maw follaes him

out from the chip-shop

an old man  -

shadow of a gull follows him

sneck aff the T.V.

hearken: a burd

croonin on the aerial

turn  off the T.V.

listen: a bird

singing on the aerial

ginge gibbie-cat

peerie teeger

sowpin frae a bowlie

ginger tom

little tiger

supping from a bowl

i the scrogs

a tasht bottle seegnals:

sinsheen an cluds

in the undergrowth

a broken bottle signals:

sunshine and clouds

ink-derk burn -

calligraphy 

o sweels an swirls

ink-dark stream  -

calligraphy 

of eddies and whirlpools

blowster  

skirlin

a rin-awa bucket

gale

howling

a run-away dustbin

athort the pome

a peerie reid eemock

...its bluid bydes, a comma

across the poem

a little red ant  

...its blood remains, a comma

fundin ma auld truan -

baith o's rousty nou  

we'll bigg nae mair wa's

finding my old trowel  -

both of us rusty now  

we'll build no more walls

it the winnock

a bummer  -

a drone wi nae steeng!

at the window

a bee  -

a drone with no sting!

Gaza, 

Guid Friday  

'...heids o enless Christs rowe doon'

Gaza, 

Good Friday  

'...heads of endless Christs roll down'

(HUGH MacDIARMID  -  THE INNUMERABLE CHRIST)

Gaza  -

oot frae the stoor: a bairn

...an back tae the stoor

Gaza  -

out from the dust: a child

...and back to the dust

daffins an blaebells:

a'm myndit o Eukraine  -

nae voar thair yit!

daffodils and bluebells:

I think of Eukraine  -

no spring there yet!

a bygaun train honks  -

heich abuin

swans repone

a passing train honks  -

high above

swans answer

the dowie causey

suddentlie ableeze

...gean flourish

the dreary street

suddenly ablaze

...cherry blossom

on the bike peth

a dirlin bob o blae-

bells!!!

on the cycle path

a vibrant bunch of blue-

bells!!!

the priest threeps:

'the wurd o God'

...a bairn ca's oot

the priest intones:

'the word of god'

...a child cries out

skypin faimilie

faur an near  -  in the gairden

a wab dirls

skyping family

far and near  -  in the garden

a web quivers

mornin  Mass

throuch a stour  -  the braes

a'ready in mantillas

morning Mass

through a blizzard  -  the hills

already in mantillas

voar  -

cheetlins

growein looder

spring  -

chirpings

growing louder

peerie blue bonnet

yer heid bobbin whit

maisic dae ye hearken tae?

little blue-tit

your head bobbing

what music do you hear?

voar's airmy

on the muive  - pynts o thair leisters 

awroads

spring's army

on the move  - points of their spears 

everywhere

the sin sheen's

on the tuim fusky boattle  -

he thocht the sin blinkit in't

the sun shines

on the empty whisky bottle  -

he thought the sun shone in it!

watterside scart  -

its spreid weengs

walcumin the sin

riverbank cormorant  -

its spread wings 

welcoming the sun

keek o day  

muives athort the gairden

freest stooryin aheid

sunrise

moves across the garden

frost racing ahead

i the tirl

daffins skewin

tentie o the burn bygaun

in the breeze

daffodils turning

watching the stream pass by

aw alang the causey

sensor lichts cum on  -

bawdrons' midnicht dander

all along the street

sensor lights come on  -

cat's midnight walk

the bodach

stoiterin nou

thankrife fir a broun haun

the old man

staggering now

grateful for a brown hand

fooneral Mass

a babbie groozles  -

baith ens o the meesterie

funeral Mass

a baby gurgles  -

both ends of the mystery

yon tyme agane -

wirms streekin

pizzel-pink

that time again  -

worms stretching

penis-pink

fund:

a bruckle scrieve

frae a bruckle laddie

found:

a fragile letter

from a fragile boy

sparks on a brainch

rowe an dunt

...newton's beddie

raindrops on a branch

roll and bump

...newton's cradle

Mardi Gras glamour  -

bairns tap-daunce:

bottle-taps stellt tae thair shuin

Mardi Gras magic  -

children tap-dance:

bottle-tops fixed to their shoes

a bleckie hunkers

fusslin

on the sinny side o the tree

a blackbird sits

whistling

on the sunny side of the tree

i the deid buddhist's

gairden

new buds 

in the dead buddhist's 

garden

new buds

i the auld neibourheid

awbodie gane  -

a lane maw's oorie skirl

in the old neighbourhood

everybody gone  -

a lone gull's eerie cry

meditation oor  -

a bleck bawdrons

corses the snaw

meditation hour  -

a black cat

crosses the snow

weet mornin  --

daffins

nid noddin as a gae bye

wet morning  -

daffodils

nodding as i pass

sainin hersel

the disabled lassie

lichts caunles fir ithers

blessing herself

the disabled girl

lights candles for others

swan

coories on'r nest

the cob stravaigs up an doon

swan

sits on her nest

the cob paces up and down

Ukraine bunker  -

bawdrons scarts's lug

on a weirheid

Ukraine bunker  -

cat scratches it's ear

on a warhead

agnes an ciaran

babet an isha:

blowsters cryin doon ma lum

agnes and ciaran

babet and isha:

storms shouting down my chimney

hern dumfoonert:

the bleck muscle

o a cairtwheelin otter

heron amazed:

the black muscle

of a cartwheeling otter

eesock poised tae dook  -

sibness

hus me on ma taes

dipper poised to dive  -

empathy

has me on my toes

 efter days o weet

nieve duntin

the sin

after days of rain

fist bumping

the sun

bruckle flooers

flourishin an deein

...midnicht rackets

fragile flowers

blossoming and dying

...midnight fireworks

athort

a Yule perk

fremmit fowk's goamins

across

a Chrismas park 

strangers' greetings

flee on the winnock

a faurawa airieplane  

...bairgin peth

fly on the window 

a distant aeroplane  

...collision path

wunter solstice  

a pearl remuved

days growein brichter

winter solstice  

a cataract removed

days growing brighter

wund  

raxin tae win awa

frae a blawn awa tent

wind  

struggling to be free

from a blown away tent

advent caunle  -

anither day

meltit awa

advent candle  -

another day

melted away

nae Yule pairty

fir him this year  -

a'm weirin's shuin

no Christmas party

for him this year  -

i'm wearing his shoes

on a kintra rod

the reid colour o daith

the bleck o craw

on a country road

the red colour of death

the black of crow

bygane geese  -

a trauchle-free

maument

geese pass  -

a trouble-free

moment

 listin drive  -

sodgers in fou cammyflage

roon the hamburger stand

recruitment drive  -

soldiers in full camouflage

round the hamburger stall

snail's tasht shall  -

sumwhaur

a bleckie chirms

snail's broken shell  -

somewhere

a blackbird sings

a day o yuisless thingums:

in the canaul, a

message-bag fou o watter

a day of useless things:

in the canal, a

shopping-bag full of water

the postie's 

fuitprents

bygaun ma yett

the postman's

footprints

past my gate

 the elements

recyclin

the auld recyclin plant

the elements

recycling

the old recycling plant

airly mornin  -

the cailleach stauns

it the bingo-ha door

early morning  -

the old lady stands

at the bingo-hall door

hunkered amang maw leid

the towrists

skail scran

sat amidst gull language

the tourists

scatter scraps

indian kintra  -

ah coff a crucifix

an twa arraheids

indian country  -

i buy a crucifix

and two arrowheads

watterside dauner

makars' busts  -

awbodie maits the swans

riverside walk

poets' busts  -

everybody feeds the swans

nautiloids

380,000000 year auld  

fir ma laddie's thirtieth

nautiloids

380,000000 years old

for my son's thirtieth

 the ceetie waukens:

the wino sooks a tinnie

a chiel pynts wi a pincil

the city wakens:

the wino sucks a can

a man points with a pencil

he skails trock fraes car

smirks it us  -

ah glisk a tuim space

he scatters car litter

smiles at us  -

i see an empty space

i the quate

the soond

o the eucharist brekkin

in the silence

the sound

of the eucharist breaking

 tree sculpture:

The Canaul Biggers  -

tree-trunk chists, tree-trunk airms

tree sculpture:

The Canal Builders  -

tree-trunk chests, tree-trunk arms

dour nod

tae the eildit jogger

...ah pech hamewart

reluctant nod

to the elderly jogger

...I puff homeward

slaw train

tae San Fransisco

Kerouac...Kerouac...Kerouac

slow train

to San Fransisco

Kerouac...Kerouac...Kerouac

he sains the cot   -

the caunle's lowe heelds awa

as though a draucht

he blesses the crib  -

the candle's flame leans awa

as though a draught

beads throuch the fingers

hailness in ilka maument  -

SMILE! dour-nebbed wifie

beads through the fingers

completeness in each moment  -

SMILE! grim-faced lady

the sea's swall,

a faurawa pipe  -  she speirs

the time...hou tae repone?

the sea's swell,

a faraway flute  -  she asks

the time...how to answer?

murther an dirdum

blinters on's neb  -

peerie weir-gemmes sodger

murder and mayhem

flicker on his face  -

little war-games soldier

brennin leaves  -

reek daidlin

amang the brainches 

burning leaves  -

smoke lingering

among the branches

wunter wedder  -

staunin it the winnock

...ma ain snawglobe

winter weather   -

standing at the window

...my own snowglobe

snell mornin  -

it Mass, hunkert

bi the votive caunles

cold morning  -

at Mass, sitting

by the votive candles