in the yin licht -
her apen ha-bible
his tuim yill bottle




in the one light -
her open bible
his empty beer bottle

maws heave up
intae the licht
lavein thair sheddaes




gulls lift off
into the light
leaving their shadows

licht blinters
on a far awa burn -
deuk landin




light flickers
on a distant stream -
duck landing

sin throuch the brainches -
calligraphy:
tree on watter




sun through the branches -
calligraphy:
tree on water

twa 'road-ragers'
gang gyte -
the caird dovers awa




two 'road-ragers'
rage -
the tramp sleeps on

foondert on the causey
she goves up at nebs -
sirens yowlin




collapsed on the street
she stares up at faces -
sirens wailing

juist whan the buss
leuks duin - a yalla rose
apens i the sin




just when the bush
looks finished - a yellow rose
opens in the sun

athort the leaves
a twa-heidit sheddae -
skwurrel reivin the orchard




across the leaves
a two-headed shadow -
squirrel raiding the orchard

the jimpest blue bonnet -
bawdrons' een glent
...green




the daintiest blue tit -
cat's eys flash
...green

threids on ma neb -
reengin fir'm
a'm snaggit in's wab




threads on my face -
searching for him
I'm caught in his web

faw'n petal -
brichtens
a dreich deuk




fallen petal -
brightens
a dull duck

on a brainch
narrest the sin
an aipple sterts tae reidden




on a branch
nearest the sun
an apple starts to redden

the day brichtens
a sinflooer keeks oot
frae ahint a hollyhock




the day brightens
a sunflower peeps out
from behind a hollyhock

lown chattert -
a snail unnerfuit
i the lang girse




silence shattered -
a snail underfoot
in the long grass

crematorium
bonnie reid roses
...lowes slaikin




crematorium
beautiful red roses
...flames licking

heich thrissels -
throuch the leaves
cloots o blae lift




tall thistles -
through the leaves
rags of blue sky

on the peth
a bricht reid berry -
brocht here




on the path
a bright red berry -
brought here

a leaf
fawin dowlessly - scuffin
the ithers short an lang




a leaf
falling helplessly -
touching the others briefly

festival toon -
he sweers at the motorist,
an waffs's baguette




festival city -
he curses the motorist,
and waves his baguette

scartit
on the cell door:
a jibbet...a boatie




scratched
on the cell door:
a scaffold...a ship

agin the fite cluds -
a swalla
anchorin ma thochts




against the white clouds -
a swallow
anchoring my thoughts


(after Ian Hamilton findlay: concrete poet)

unner the brig
a brucken bottle
spreedin the licht




under the bridge
a broken bottle
spreading the light

a brek i the cluds -
a rousty bike
wabbles i the burn




a break in the clouds -
a rusty bicycle
wobbles in the stream

(Mainichi Daily News)

oot frae the sheddaes
a sheddae raxes
...craw




out from the shadows
a shadow stretches
...crow

doon the rod
echt-wheelers thunnerin -
a leddy launners daunerin




down the highway
eight-wheelers thundering -
a ladybird walking

dugs stour
throuch the sned girse -
a green haar




dogs race
through the cut grass -
a green mist

rivin's wheel-chair -
a peth throuch
breers an snorlie ruits




forcing his wheel-chair -
a path through
thorns and twisted roots

ahint steekit hingers -
the new weedower
blethers tae's guidwife




behind closed curtains -
the new widower
talks to his wife

bi the jile wa -
brummle breers
skailin bluid




by the prison wall -
bramble thorns
spilling blood

efter incaains
geeglin frae the sheddaes -
nuns on retreat




after prayers
giggling from the shadows -
nuns on retreat

bi the embassy
a chiel murmellin -
sheddae-baurs athort's neb




by the embassy
a protestor -
shadow-bars across his face

on toon lums
maws hunkerin -
thair sangs o the sey




on city chimneys
gulls sitting -
their songs of the sea

ootby the monastery -
the preachin
o the auncient aik




outside the monastery -
the sermon
of the ancient oak

'jazz on a summer's day' -
a skep fou o flooers
fou o bummers




'jazz on a summer's day' -
a basket full of flowers
full of bees

oot frae a lift
o bleck an fite cluds -
craws an maws




out from a sky
of black and white clouds -
crows and gulls

thrissel's purpie toorie -
bummer's wecht
cowps it croosly




thistle's purple bonnet -
bee's weight
tips it jauntily

scuil hoalidays -
in the playgrun
the widden dug's weet een




school holidays -
in the playground
the wooden dog's wet eyes

taigilt in refleckshuns
the pheelosopher
goves intae the dub




tangled in reflections
the philosopher
gazes into the pond

deuk scarts'r heid
wi an orange fuit -
easement on sic a gray day




duck scratches her head
with an orange foot -
relief on such a grey day

fleedin quallt -
a clint heaves frae the burn
dichtit claen




flooding abated -
a rock rises from the stream
washed clean

smoorichin the het stane -
a lane rose
deein o drouth




hugging the hot stone -
a lone rose
dying of thirst

threy speuggies scash
on a roobrub blade -
druckenly




three sparrows squabble
on a rhubarb leaf -
drunkenly

'anither deid sodger' -
the brawest thrisseldoon
panders awa




'another dead soldier' -
the finest thistledown
drifts away

inveesabil midgies -
waggitie's
mid-err ballet




invisible midges -
wagtail's
mid-air ballet

bawdrons gittin auld -
ilka day his bell
narer the plainstanes




cat getting old -
every day his bell
nearer the pavement

the breer's fume
sneddin throuch
the diesel reek




the wild-rose's fragrance
cutting through
the diesel fumes

day daws
derkness sperfles -
leain the craws ahint




day dawns
darkness disperses -
leaving the crows behind

twa bleck dugs rin an daff -
thair reid tungs
thair fite banes




two black dogs run and play -
their red tongues
their white bones

simmer mornin -
tae glisk sic blitheness
wammlin throuch a cuddy




summer morning -
to see such joy
wriggling through a horse

autistic laddie
faw'n ower
cartoons jiggin on's neb




autistic boy
fallen asleep
cartoons dancing on his face

sin braks throuch -
a steel caber
boos i the burn




sun breaks through -
a steel beam
bends in the stream

haggit wuid -
a singul burd
dairtin throuch the quate




felled forest -
a single bird
darting through the silence

treen owerhing -
the burn chynges
frae bibblin licht tae grumlie




trees overhang -
the stream changes
from bubbling light to gloomy

bairns skelloch
airms i the err -
playgrun fou o bibbles




children scream
arms in the air -
playground full of bubbles

cluds
passin ower
fou o dubs




clouds
passing over
full of puddles

saumon fir tae -
ma fingers
jowelt




salmon for tea -
my fingers
jewelled

weet fir days -
in the syver
pran o yestreen's speirins




rain for days -
in the gutter
pulp of yesterday's news

furst communicants'
blinterin croons -
leaf-pynts hingit wi sparks




first communicants'
glittering diadems -
leaf-tips hung with raindrops

hauf-fou halflins
sclimin the sterr -
paidlin squaiks intae'r drame




tiddly teenagers
climbing the stairs -
pressing squeaks into her dream

doverin -
Yamaguchi's haiku
heavin an fawin




dozing -
Yamaguchi's haiku
rising and falling

ranter -
muckle-boukit in a dub
aneath the wildfire




reveller -
pregnant in a puddle
beneath the lightning

...doon the burn
a singul rose petal
wyves atween the deuks




...down the stream
a single rose petal
weaves between the ducks

a blink
frae the puppie -
a bummer in'ts ee




a wink
from the poppy -
a bumblebee in its eye

athort the new rin-in
bawdrons' fitprents -
sall ootlast us baith




across the new driveway
cat's footprints -
shall outlast us both

raxin fir a clud
the bairn tottles -
sits i the dub smirkin




reaching for a cloud
the toddler topples -
sits in the puddle smiling

weet stertin
attercap rinnin
atween the draps




rain starting
spider running
between the drops

a splatch
o wull roobrub
diddlin i the weet




a patch
of wild rhubarb
singing in the rain

weet - tirrin
the gean's petals
yin bi yin




rain - stripping
the rose's petals
one by one

craw
wi's muckle neb
sowps a singul spark




crow
with his huge beak
sips a single raindrop

hern, stane-still -
wund suddentlik
pooks a fedder frae's weeng




heron, stone-still -
wind suddenly
plucks a feather from his wing

govein doon on hern -
govein doon
intae the watter




gazing down on heron -
gazing down
into the watter

a breer -
nettles heeld forrit
gairdin it




a wild rose -
nettles lean forward
gaurding it

blowster -
wabs bairdie
wi thrisseldoon




gales -
webs bearded
with thistledown

the fisher
kestin's piece-box
catchit a burd




the fisherman
casting his sandwich-box
caught a bird

frae'r daith-bed
she seis the brummle's flourish
gie wey tae the fruit




from her death-bed
she sees the bramble's blossom
give way to the fruit

a mornin
o dubs:
rhymin awthing




a morning
of puddles:
repeating everything

the convent gairden's
gnomes hae pawkie smirks -
yin plays the box




the convent garden's
gnomes have roguish smiles -
one plays the accordian

clematis
raxin apen -
nae bummers the day




clematis
straining open -
no bees today

deuklins on the towe-peth -
amangst the yella gowans
bawdrons' een




ducklings on the tow-path -
amongst the buttercups
cat's eyes

sainit wi haly ile
a prees ma broo
agin ma guidwife's




blest with holy oil
I press my forehead
against my wife's

twa bleckies on a stug
centuries-auld sangs
in thair nebs




two blackbirds on a stump
centuries-old songs
in their beaks

butterie
foryettin,myndin,
foryettin...the wey




butterfly
forgetting,remembering,
forgetting...the way

ootby the howf
youthie speuggies
in a stramash




outside the pub
young sparrows
disturbing the peace

ootby the vennel
a puil o bluid -
fuchsias owerhingin




outside the alley
a pool of blood -
fuchsias overhanging

michaelmas gowans
gove athort the causey
tae the kirk ferr




michaelmas daisies
gaze across the street
to the church fair

aw day
sneddin treen -
a bog on ma pillae




all day
pruning trees -
a bug on my pillow

reid puppies
heeld thegither
...derk een




red poppies
lean together
...dark eyes

roukie mornin -
sheddae burds unnerwatter
sheddae burds i the err




misty morning -
shadow birds underwater
shadow birds in the air

atween the bodach
an the speuggie:
brukken breid




between the old man
and the sparrow:
broken bread

a furst burd veesits -
the peerie aipple tree
boos




a first bird visits -
the tiny apple tree
bows

the cailleach's roses
heeld oot
intae the ceetie




the old lady's roses
lean out
into the city

pheelosopher:
bleart refleckshun
in's fuskie




philosopher:
bleary reflection
in his whisky

roses hing frae the wa
...nebs o the
orphantage bairns




roses hang from the wall
...faces of the
orphanage children

bummer slidderin oot
frae the lady's thummles -
its wark duin




bee slipping out
from the foxglove's bell -
its work done

the deein sinflooer
goves
intae the bicker




the dying sunflower
stares
into the teacup

in the sin
a craw hunkers
in a dub o bleck fedders




in the sun
a crow sits
in a puddle of black feathers

leaf fleitin slawer
nor the rist o the burn -
the makar in't




leaf floating slower
than the rest of the stream -
the poet in it

a hinmaist
pish-the-bed
taisilt bi the tirl




a last
dandelion-clock
teased by the breeze

abuin the burn
mudges - ower fest
tae lave a sheddae




above the stream
midges - too fast
to leave a shadow

seturday mornin fitbaw -
anither baw
fleits doon the watter




saturday morning football -
another ball
floats downstream