Wednesday, June 28, 2006

nordic voar
abuin the rittit snaw
yalla butteries blinter




nordic spring
above the rutted snow
yellow butterflies flicker
gled's stieve glower:
craw's deein
dinnles throuch'm




hawk's steady gaze:
crow's dying
tremors through him

Tuesday, June 27, 2006

hunkert on the kirb
a tike an me
govein at the wund




sitting on the kerb
a stray dog and I
watching the wind
i the muckle kirk
leams o licht
aw frae the yin sin



in the cathedral
shafts of light
all from the one sun
heids o barley
heeld this wey heeld yon -
a fusperin souch




heads of barley
lean this way lean that -
a whispering sigh

Monday, June 26, 2006

heids turn
she snuves alang
chowin a bricht green aipple




heads turn
she glides along
eating a bright green apple
in a rinnin burn
deuk stauns, her breist
alowe wi blinterins




in a running stream
duck stands, her breast
aflame with shimmerings
japanese gairden
peerie bairns
daff at hidie




japanese garden
tiny children
play hide-and-seek
in an auld pictur
the twin tooers aye staunin:
awbody at thair dasks




in an old movie
the twin towers still standing:
workers at their desks

Tuesday, June 20, 2006

autistic laddie
hauds's mither's haun ticht
she hauds the faither's




autistic boy
holds his mother's hand tightly
she holds the father's
jasmine flourish
maun hae left a smitch
butteries roon ma baird




jasmine blossom
must have left a trace
butterflies round my beard

Monday, June 19, 2006

his auld sark
waffin
fleggin the craws




his old shirt
waving
scaring the crows
raxin fir a simmit -
gean flourish
strinkilt wi snaw




reaching for a vest -
cherry blossom
sprinkled with snow
wesp -
sookin douceness
frae the gullie's bledd




wasp -
sucking sweetness
from the knife's blade
monday mornin -
the bodach coonts's bawbees
ootside the aff-licence




monday morning -
the old man counts his money
outside the off-licence
sidderwuid
runkilt atween fingers
...mindin




southernwood
crushed between fingers
...memories
wesps hae taen ower
the blue bonnets' nest-box
baudrons disnae ken




wasps have taken over
the tits' nest-box
cat doesn't know

Saturday, June 17, 2006

gowk's day -
yin haffet scowdert
yin haffet davert




april 1st -
one cheek sunburnt
one cheek chilled

Friday, June 16, 2006

in the workie's skip,
amang the brock -
her baffies




in the builder's skip,
amongst the bricks and concrete -
her slippers
haudin by the jile
her fume
hings i the air




passing the prison
her perfume
drifts on the air

Wednesday, June 14, 2006

traivellin ower lang:
the snorlie treen
stert tae leuk unchancie




travelling too long:
the olive trees
begin to look threatening
frae the brig:
a deuk on ilka shouther
a troot sooms oot frae ma lug




from the bridge:
a duck on each shoulder
a trout swims out from my ear

Monday, June 12, 2006

oor luvin...
mellin wi the burdsang
at keek o day




our loving...
mixing
with the dawn chorus
turtles tummle'n sloosh
i the temple's dub -
monks gang by dourlie




turtles tumble and splash
in the temple's pond -
sombre monks pass by
hail watter
raindraps reboun
a new-biggit nest crines




monsoon rain
drops explode
a new-built nest shrinks
shifflin cairts:
the bodach
wi nae veesitors




shuffling cards:
the old man
with no visitors
bodachs
wi wee plastic pokes
sclimin hoaspital brae




little old men
with little plastic bags
climbing hospital hill
her cot fauldit
on the strand -
the souchin chingle




her coat folded
on the shore -
the sighing shingle

(for margaret)
he murlt ma haiku
agin the wa -
dreeps o ellipsis




he smashed my haiku
against the wall -
drips of ellipsis

(a bad review)

Sunday, June 11, 2006

the lassie
screeds aff the guid wurds
her neb blinterin




the young girl
reads the bidding-prayer
her face flickering

Saturday, June 10, 2006

deif tae'm nou
a lou ma guidwife's smile
at bleckie's chirmin




deaf to him now
I enjoy my wife's smile
at blackbird's singing
buddleia
taks's heid
bee rowes i the girse




buddleia
intoxicating
bee rolls in the grass

Friday, June 09, 2006

douce reek tae the goads
fleets intae the square
haps the mah-jong players




incense to the gods
drifts into the square
bathes the mah-jong players
snell wund frae the firth
the chinese lassie's
fiddle trummles




cold wind from the firth
the chinese girl's
erhu trembles

(erhu: two stringed violin-like)

Thursday, June 08, 2006

doverin
suddentlie a dormoose
its dowie een




half-asleep
suddenly a dormouse
its sad eyes
wee fite herts
amangst the dug keech:
breer petals




small white hearts
amongst the dog turds:
dog-rose petals

Tuesday, June 06, 2006

september shours -
caurs splairge stobbie pop-airt
athort the plainstanes




september showers -
cars splash spiky pop-art
across the pavement
fisher kestin -
in brainches abuin's heid
attercap wyves lang threids




fisherman casting -
in branches above his head
spider spins long threads
fundin a stane tae kick
the cadger's laddie's
quat's graith




finding a stone to kick
the street-vendor's boy's
left his pole of goods
a scrieve fir her:
breist-screenin clinic -
I byde an byde...




a letter for her:
breast-screening clinic -
I wait and wait...
voar mornin
the daffins
thair gowden craigs




spring morning
the daffodills
their golden throats
on the causey
an auld mattrass
duntit bi luve an daith




on the pavement
an old mattress
dented by love and death
leaf snaggit
i the winnock
hauf-rods in tae the het




leaf caught
in the window
half-way in to the warm
the auld tarry-breeks
tentie o the kist slumpin
lippert claith smeethens




the old submariner
watches the coffin sink
rippled cloth smoothens
throuch the kintraside
trombones rairin
craws hunker on rouky brainches




through the countryside
trombones roaring
crows sit on misty branches
simmer veesitors gane
the pipie doodles awa
leaves fouin's case




summer visitors gone
the piper plays on
leaves filling his case
canaul's geelt lown
a crippilt laddie
an a swan govein




canal's frozen stillness
a handicapped boy
and a swan gazing
craw speldert -
pikeit tae the
barley perk's paling




crow spreadeagled -
barbed to the
barley field's fence

Monday, June 05, 2006

wunter sun -
the bairn wunners
at's sheddae




winter sun -
the child wonders
at his shadow
pittin up a wurd fir pace -
his
bauchelt shuin




prayers for peace -
his
down-at-heel shoes
dreeblin patients
are hurlt by
gowkin at a warl




drooling patients
trundle by in push-chairs
gazing at a world
in the tirl chyngein
frae derk tae licht
the deid lowrie's cot




in the breeze changing
from dark to light
the dead fox's coat
mercat day -
oot o sicht, the bodach
streetches a guttie




market day -
out of sight, the old man
stretches a catapult
november sheddaes
broon leaves
cleekit




november shadows
brown leaves
clutched
sheep siller glisters
in the brucken stanes
licht fous the mool




mica glitters
in the broken stones
light fills the grave
laicher an laicher
the daffins' heids
i the weet




lower and lower
the daffodils' heads
in the rain
denner tyme -
scuil-bairn luvers culyie,
pree wi mous fou o bridie




lunch time -
school-kid lovers fondle,
kiss with mouths full of pie
craw sowps
frae a howe i the taur:
hou bleck he is




crow drinks
from a hollow in the tar:
how black he is
in the daurk
the bed shaks -
her guid freen's wun awa




in the dark
the bed shakes -
her best friend has died
canaul thowin
deuks sit on islands o ice
a baw sits on a baw




canal thawing
ducks sit on islands of ice
a ball sits on a ball
gay luvers stravaigin
bi the watter's lip -
the wersh wund easin




gay lovers
walking by the water's edge -
the bitter wind easing
throuch duddie leaves
skein efter skein o geese
corse the lift




through tattered leaves
skein after skein of geese
cross the sky
ma neb refleckit -
smirkin in a photy
amang jazz leegends




my face refleckted -
smiling in a photograph
among jazz legends
hunkert thegither
oor nebs wabble
wi ilk tattie that faws




bent together
our faces wobble
with each potato that falls

(after seamus heaney)

Saturday, June 03, 2006

gean flourish fleits
pish-the-beds
rin oot o tyme




cherry blossom drifts
dandelion clocks
run out of time
voar -
the sliddery furrs
bydein the seed




spring -
the slippery furrows
await the seed
guiser's neep-lantern -
a week gane
leukin dour




halloween lantern -
a week gone
looking glum
simmer eenin
atween treen, glaizie
columns o midgies




summer evening
between trees, glittering
columns of midges

Friday, June 02, 2006

wunnerin,
moch,
at yir jinky rods




wondering,
moth,
at your zigzaggy roads
a perk o puppies -
twa ootlins
stert tae collogue




a field of poppies -
two strangers
start to converse
no shair...
gaelic signpost -
sklentit at bi craws




unsure...
gaelic signpost -
watched by crows
the speengie's
bluid-reid heid
cowpt on the causey




the peony's
blood-red head
tilted on the sidewalk

(for chet baker)
brattle o clinks
in the tassie -
fite o's teeth




clatter of coins
in the tin -
white of his teeth
mither an dochter
settin aff bulbs -
the derk yirth




mother and daughter
planting bulbs -
the dark earth
leanin on the yett
bletherin tae mysel -
mappies' lugs cockt




leaning on the gate
talking to myself -
rabbits' ears pricked up
a veesit hame -
wundblawn thrisseldoun
amang's herr




a visit home -
windblown thistledown
among his hair

Thursday, June 01, 2006

auld monk:his tasht tassie -
in the tuimness
oor fingers tig




old monk:his battered cup -
in the emptiness
our fingers touch
left as a myndin:
his mell -
finger-rittit haunle




left as a gift:
his carving mallet -
finger-grooved handle
hure
threips in chinese -
a straik ma lyart baird:
she lauchs



prostitute
solicits in chinese -
I stroke my grey beard:
she smiles
hern fushin -
makkin a bul's-ee
ilka time




heron fishing -
making a bull's-eye
every time
hairst -
in a quate stairheid
a butterie fauldit




autumn -
in a quiet stairway
a butterfly folded
Buddha
his gowd-leaf skin peelin
gleg i the wund




Buddha
his gold-leaf skin peeling
alive in the wind
aw elbucks an knees
puddock hysts himsel
oot frae the dub quately




all elbows and knees
frog winches himsel
out from the pond quietly
rimie nicht
on staney grun
a condom steamin




frosty night
on stony ground
a condom steaming
heidstanes wurn smeeth:
nems smoort -
bairns daff at hidie



gravestones worn smooth:
names obliterated -
children play hide-and-seek
veesitin oor:
nae betterment -
sned flooers deein




visiting hour:
no improvement -
cut flowers dying
divorcit faither
oot wi the bairns -
the hern taks kittlie staps




divorced father
out with the children -
the heron steps delicately
tattie-howkin -
the orra loon's
glaizie arc o pish




potato-picking -
the farm-hand's
glittering arc of piss
rimie nicht
depth o sterns
neist door's drouthy snochers




frosty night
depth of stars
next door's drunk snores
a merk on the wa
whaur ither ludgers
hae leent thair heids




a mark on the wall
where other lodgers
have leant their heads
reid mad mither
cleidit in a tooel -
sneeterin frae the wuids




furious mother
dressed only in a towel -
giggling from the woods
ilka shed o green
the-day
on the gean




every shade of green
today
on the cherry tree