scuil hoalidays -
he hunkers on biggin saun
ere faither's lowsin tyme
school holidays -
he sits on building sand
till father's finishing time
craw dooks's derkness
intae the burn
whilk swallaes it
crow dips his darkness
into the stream
which swallows it
jazz throuch the apen door -
a butterie
jitterbugs by
jazz through the open door -
a butterfly
maggie
hunkers on the bucket lid -
ah'm tentie o't thinkin
magpie
sits on the bin lid -
I watch it thinking
throuch stoor they hoastit
an kerved cathedrals
...braw heidstanes
through dust they coughed
and carved cathedrals
...magnificent headstones
acer
reid nebbit
it its ain bonnieness
blushing
at its own beauty
weet mornin -
snail an me
...oor hystit umbrellys
wet morning -
snail and I
...our raised umberellas
faw'n nest -
sae perfitly roond
sae beinly
fallen nest -
so perfectly round
so comforting
his days o sheddaes
baurs thit urnae thair -
ma manic freen
his days of shadows
bars that aren't there -
my manic friend
a peerie butterie
focht the wund
tae hunker aside me
a little butterfly
battled the wind
to sit beside me
owercast -
sum flooers
sweirt tae apen
overcast -
some flowers
hesitant to open
votin day -
pickin a dander
bi the watterside
election day -
choosing
a walk by the riverside
bawdrons stoors taewarts me
prood
o's moothfou o moose
cat races towards me
proud
of his mouthful of mouse
the auld Muslim
an the auld Christian waff
...they ken the truith!
the old Muslim
and the old Christian wave
...they know the truth!
amang sic dour fowk
the yalla-gowans'
smirking nebs
among such grim folk
the daisies'
smiling faces
licht traivilt
fowerteen billion year
fir his wae een tae - dormoose
light travelled
fourteen billion years
for his sad eyes too - dormouse
efter the yirdin
he hunkers souchin:
Somewhere over the rainbow
after the funeral
he sits humming:
flags droop
pipes foonder i the cunyie
...anither brust fitbaw
bagpipes slump in the corner
...another burst football
(EUROS 2024)
in her phone buik
mair nummers scartit oot
nor byde
in her phone book
more numbers scratched out
than remain
in the bus shelter
a snorlie condom
...a vaige endit
a knotted condom
...a journey ended
the ceildh ower
bairns' herts brustin
boa fedders errborne
the concert over
childrens' hearts bursting
boa feathers airborne
(for Amelia)
D-Day -
i the gairden puppies
stan fest i the blowster
in the garden poppies
stand fast in the storm
the speengie rose apenin
tyme
fir the drouthy bummer
the peony rose opening
time
for the thirsty bee
the watterside
bangin up
efter the fluid
the riverbanks
rising up
after the flood
trystin wi maggie on the rod -
a bode
or semply a haiku?
meeting magpie on the road -
an omen
or simply a haiku?
twa fremmit fowk -
the bleckie's croonin's
stellt thaim
two strangers -
the blackbird's singing
has brought them to a standstill
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
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!
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
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 -
flamenco
swirling wind -
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 -
of eddies and whirlpools
blowster
skirlin
in a rin-awa bucket
gale
howling
in 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'
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
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-
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
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
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
sits on her nest
the cob paces up and down
Ukraine bunker -
bawdrons scarts's lug
on a weirheid
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