daffin
i the hait
the dug bowfs at the sin




frolicking
in the heat
the dog barks at the sun

in's upturnt bunnet
placks fir the gangrel -
twa fir's deid een




in his upturned cap
pennies for the beggar -
two for his dead eyes

pittin oot the bucket
a peerie skelloch -
haar swurlin towarts her




putting out the trash
a tiny scream -
fog swirling towards her

in the haar
craws murrin
heich i thair derk nests




in the mist
crows murmuring
high in their dark nests

skreich o day -
throuch the burdsang
heich-heels knackin




dawn chorus -
through it all
high-heels clicking

heeldin ower
a breist cowps oot
crescent muin




leaning over
a breast falls out
crescent moon

agin the kirkyaird wa
the tide
showdin




against the churchyard wall
the ocean
rocking

maws
reiddenin
i the eenin lift




gulls
reddening
in the evening sky

agane
leaves apenin
oot frae the meesterie




again
leaves opening
out from the mystery

auchteent burthday -
tethert tae'r pawrents' yett
balloons raxin tae be lowst




eighteenth birthday -
tied to her parents' gate
balloons struggling to be free

craw
lans on's sheddae
sooks it up




crow
lands on his shadow
sucks it up

licht throuch
the kirk winnock -
bairns mak mappie sheddaes




light through
the church window -
children make rabbit shadows

on ma wa
ma retiral mindin
tinglin the oors...the saiconts




on my wall
my retiral gift
chiming the hours...the seconds

guidwife doverin -
muinlicht
spreid on the bed




wife asleep -
moonlight
spread on the bed

craw -
a derk thocht
kythes i the mind




crow -
a dark thought
enters the mind

the toon
in the derkness
a stainit gless winnock




the city
in the darkness
a stained glass window

weet cluds gane -
the canaul towe-peth
a bricht blae




rain clouds gone -
the canal tow-path
a bright blue

athort the blae lift
a singul contrail muves -
scriever's clag ower




across the blue sky
a single contrail moves -
writer's block over

alang the burnside
snawdraps -
snaw faws




along the waterside
snowdrops -
snow falls

the jaur
o bricht daffins
...fusslin a jig aw day




the jar
of bright daffodils
...whistling a jig all day

a stour -
the cailleach stoaps
tae mait the maws




a blizzard -
the old lady stops
to feed the gulls

chinese lassie
her yalla pouther -
a furst daffin




chinese girl
her yellow powder -
a first daffodil

brucken yill bottle -
in a splinder
freithy cluds




broken beer bottle -
in a fragment
frothy clouds

upwind a laddie
blawin bibbles -
a streetch intae a dramewarl




upwind a boy
blowing bubbles -
I walk into a dreamworld

'ROADWORKS' -
navvies roon the bore
gove doon oan a siller sin




'ROADWORKS' -
labourers round the hole
gaze down on a silver sun

ootside the scuil
a fecht -
reid berries i the snaw




outside the school
a fight -
red berries in the snow

craw's neb
pikes the girse
the hale perk chitters




crow's beak
spikes the grass
the whole field shivers

tirl -
sheddaes stravaig
throuch the chaumers




breeze -
shadows wander
through the rooms

brainches streek oot
green taps
tig the tirl




branches stretch out
green tips
touch the breeze

thowe
dubs creckin -
a greitin bairn's runkilt neb




thaw
puddles cracking -
a crying child's crumpled face

in the clessroom winnock
new bulbs
sprootin




in the classroom window
new bulbs
sprouting

throuch the fawin weet
his bleck umberellae
muivin amang the craws




through the falling rain
his black umbrella
moving amongst the crows

in a seelent vennel
a maw skirls
swallaein the jeelin wund




in a silent alley
a gull screams
swallowing the icy wind

bawdrons curlt
i the monastery cheer -
ma maister




cat curled
in the monastery chair -
my master

Mornin Mass -
a fite wunter sin
...beekin




Morning Mass -
a white winter sun
...warming

a lift fou o sterns -
clinkin o glesses
dirr o the crack




a sky full of stars -
clinking of glasses
hum of conversation

a coortin perr sit -
her neb tae the sin
muves as it muves




young lovers sit -
her face to the sun
moves as it moves

sunlicht wyvein
throuch the brainches -
planets in luve




sunlight weaving
through the branches -
planets in love

frae
the t.v. aerial
bleckie luve sangs




from
the t.v. aerial
blackbird love songs

gled
on the heichest brainch
a contrail progs'm




hawk
on the highest branch
a contrail pierces him

oot frae the snaw
a siller birk
makkin a plash




out from the snow
a silver birch
making a splash

maw
ower freestit perks
lit frae aneath




gull
over frosted fields
lit from beneath

janiveer jazz -
the wund-section's
blawn the ruif aff




january jazz -
the wind-section's
blown the roof off

granda hauds'm
up tae the winnock
...dichts a fou muin ontae't




grandfather holds him up
to the window
...rubs a full moon onto it

snell wund -
throuch the causeys
a joogler jooglin gullies




bitter wind -
through the streets
a juggler juggling knives

youthie chiels
fellin youthie chiels -
weet blatters on sclidder




young men
killing young men -
rain beats on ice

takkin doon
Yule lichts -
the gairden snawlit




taking down
Christmas lights -
the garden snowlit

licht throuch the winnock -
in ilka pictur
fawin snaw




light through the window -
in every picture
falling snow

plainstanes chackert
wi snaw an snawmelt -
a haud tae the bleck




pavements chequered
with snow and snowmelt -
I keep to the black

on a brig
twa trevellers
skair a wurd... 'pace'




on a bridge
two travellers
share a word... 'peace'

hogmanay -
rackets agane
flourishin fir a saicont




new year's eve -
fireworks again
blossoming for a second

reddin
her pillae -
a fou muin




plumping
her pillow -
a full moon

a hinmaist photy -
her murtherer
preein'r chaft




a last photograph -
her murderer
kissing her cheek

clappit
agin the bairn's heid:
the mither's chaft




concave
against the baby's head:
the mother's cheek

his guidwife gane
the bodach
funds a seep in's pig




his wife gone
the old man finds a leak
in his hot-water bottle

lang intae the nicht
a dinsome ceilidh -
wund throuch the causeys




long into the night
a riotous party -
wind through the streets

bi the causey
a dead mappie -
stieve in'ts hinmaist lowp




by the roadside
a dead rabbit -
stiff in its last leap

the peerie moose -
scartin scartin
a thirl i ma sloom




the little mouse -
scratching scratching
a hole in my sleep

kirk doors
wide tae the wa -
a pickle leaves




church doors
flung wide -
a few leaves

Yule hoalidays -
the dominie
weirs antlers




Christmas holidays -
the teacher
wears antlers

ilka mornin
Reid Rab -
the hovein sin on's breist




every morning
a robin -
the rising sun on his breast

the makar's but an ben
tint in yowden-drift -
a threid o reek




the poet's cottage
lost in drifting snow -
a thread of smoke

rimie haar -
the wabster's daikert
the gean tree




frosty mist -
the spider's decorated
the cherry tree

brennin leaves -
reek hoves
claps tae the brainches




burning leaves -
smoke rises
clings to the branches

Yule lichts daizzlin -
deep i the gangrel's kep
dowie broon placks




Christmas lights dazzling -
deep in the beggar's cap
dull brown pennies

the thrissel leaf:
its ain glisterin
eeshogels




the thistle leaf:
its own glittering
icicles

the rooster's skirl
snecks throuch the mornin's freist -
het eggs amang the strae




the cockrel's cry
cuts through the morning's frost -
warm eggs amongst the straw

loass o a freen -
a brucken brainch
fleits awa doonstream




loss of a friend -
a broken branch
floats away downstream

muinlit:
a shilpit bawdrons
his bunt waffin in space




moonlit:
a skinny cat
his tail waving in space

her wechty pokes faw
she faws -
snaw moutens on her govein een




her heavy bags fall
she falls -
snow melts on her staring eyes

wund i the lum -
brucken airticles
stour alang the causey




wind in the chimney -
broken things
race along the street

agin the derk lift
reid-lit brainches
...vascular




against the dark sky
red-lit branches
...vascular

dubs reiddenin -
anither day
ens




puddles reddening -
another day
ends

advent caunles
blinterin -
the wund's lang raik




advent candles
flickering -
the wind's long journey

fou muin -
honesty dirls
i the tirl




full moon -
honesty rattles
in the breeze

the day -
new roses
the colour o snaw




today -
new roses
the colour of snow

it sterts tae snaw -
the blin musicianer
leuks upwarts




it starts to snow -
the blind musician
looks upwards

wund chirts
atween heidstanes -
throuch the leaves:Kaddish




wind squeezes
between headstones -
through the leaves:Kaddish


(old Jewish cemetery:Prague)

snell -
the tooter crunkles
the clarinettist
blaws on's fingers




cold -
the cornet crackles
the clarinettist
blows on his fingers

pawtin the deepth
o the Hebrew scrieve:
shivers i the dorbie's baird




fingering the depth
of the Hebrew script:
chips in the stone-mason's beard

a snell wund -
the bodach hunkers
his box souchin




a bitter wind -
the old man sits
his accordion wheezing

a neon watergaw
skimmers on her sheeny buits -
doontoon leddy




a neon rainbow
glitters on her shiny boots -
downtown lady

hungower -
a'where he leuks
reid berries




hungover -
everywhere he looks
red berries

skirls
frae a far awa playgrun -
ma auld scuil hauf-caw'd doon




screams
from a faraway playground -
my old school half-demolished

the auld makar
hame frae the burnside -
breidnirls aye in's pooch




the old poet
home from the riverside -
breadcrumbs still in his pocket

mornin licht
muves athort the herth -
stour steerin




morning light
moves across the hearth -
dust stirring

toon causey -
abodie tint i the haar
o thair ain braith




city street -
everybody lost in the fog
of their own breath

her cauld neb
whan a preed'r -
furst day o 'Wunter Haiku'




her cold nose
when I kissed her -
first day of 'Winter Haiku'

maple tree nakit -
its huil
o skimmerin licht




maple tree naked -
its skin
of glittering light

auld dug
steek in's mou -
wushin he'd rin fir't




old dog
stick in his mouth -
wishing he had ran for it

unner the brig
a yaised condom -
ettlin tae heave i the tirl




under the bridge
a used condom -
trying to rise in the breeze

fite mait dreepin
frae craw's neb -
a hinmaist aipple




white flesh dripping
from crow's beak -
a last apple

at ma door
leaves in a bing
...chitterin




at my door
leaves in a pile
...shivering

the colour
gane frae'r gairden -
wunter licht lemes on her hauns




the colour
gone from her garden -
winter light gleams on her hands

scuil playgrun -
leaves flichterin efter bairns
flichterin efter leaves




school playground -
leaves chasing children
chasing leaves

the-day
the birk -
fou o auld nests




today
the birch tree -
full of old nests

licht throuch the treen -
monks'
orange cloots




light through the trees -
monks'
orange robes

the jakie -
his sheddae on the wa
amangst the graffiti




the wino -
his shadow on the wall
amongst the graffiti

aw saunts' day -
ten rodden berries
fir a rosary




all saints' day -
ten rowan berries
for a rosary

her reid pownie-tail
slaikit bi the wund -
leddie firefechter




her red pony-tail
licked by the wind -
lady firefighter