Sunday 11 December 2011

Three Days

three days, three days, it’s only three days
I keep telling myself, over and over
in so many ways, I keep telling myself
~ it’s only three days

I try to distract my wandering mind
to make myself see, I must still live life
not pause for three days and shut myself away
I must go on, not hide to feel safe

harder and harder, that’s how it feels
I watch time tick by, clicking my heels
paranoia grows deeper, gnawing at me
my mind goes mad, it’s her that I need

tell me it’s over and now it’s no days
tell me it’s over, that she comes home today

Poetryman
Copyright © 2011 by Mike Sutcliffe

Sunday 4 December 2011

The Poets Tree

Sometimes I sit beneath The Poets Tree,
where legends linger, not yet me.
Their passage earned with words so pure,
their names etched in, their place assured.

Byron, Tennyson, Burns and Poe,
I feel their words course through my soul.
They bring me comfort when I am alone,
lost in my mind ~ where poems grow.

Breathing deep their scent floods in,
my senses ache from deep within,
of powerful imagery, rhythm and rhyme,
lost in their words from another time.

If I dare to look up perhaps I will see,
a new green shoot, that may one day be me.

Poetryman
Copyright © 2011 by Mike Sutcliffe

Of Musings, Love and Life ~ Now on Amazon!

Welcome all to the next instalment of the release of my new book ~ Of Musings, Love and Life! In my previous post it had just been released via a local book shop, who very kindly agreed to stock it on my behalf, and I'm pleased to say that I've had to replenish their stock twice already in the past couple of weeks, which is really encouraging!

I'm sure that I'm not the first, and certainly won't be the last, aspiring author to have released a book and wonder just exactly how it will be received. You consume yourself for months and months, hour after hour to make sure that the poems you've written are as meaningful as they can be, and whilst you are completely wrapped in it and are convinced, from your own perspective, that it is a really great piece of work, ultimately that is you appraising your own work, so quite naturally you're going to be slightly biased!

So in reality all that you can do is to rely on the people that visit your blog, read your poems, and ultimately feel that the snippets of work they have seen give enough justification to buy your book. And that is what I'm now asking you all to do. It would be great to see feedback on the poems on here, on Twitter and also by the book sales that I get.

Should you feel that you want to buy the paperback, it's available now on Amazon via the following link:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0957023804/ref=sc_pgp__m_A1HEBM1XAZG5YE_1?ie=UTF8&m=A1HEBM1XAZG5YE&n=&s=&v=glance

Amazon's own listing shows as not yet released, for some strange reason, and out of stock. As the author I have listed it myself, which is the link above, and is in stock and released now! If you have any issues trying to place the order, or have made an order and would like the copy signing, then drop me an email at poetryman@hotmail.co.uk and I will make sure that your order is dealt with.

In the near future I will get around to converting it into and ebook, although my limited technical skills may need a little updating first!

May I just say thanks very much to all who drop by and read the poems on my blog, and of course to all who buy the book.

Wednesday 30 November 2011

The Beach

fading over the eternal horizon
to dance in far off playgrounds
auburn flames streak outward
fighting the days near end

rolling from the white horses manes
the touch of Poseidon’s breath
paints lips with drifting, salty air

lost in the ebb of moon pulled tides
no words break the crashing silence

our hands mingle

Poetryman
Copyright © 2011 by Mike Sutcliffe

Sunday 20 November 2011

Unconditional Love

It is as deep as it can be
when I look into their eyes
I see them with a smile
I see myself inside

What is this magic
that brought them to me
so perfect in every way
how can it be

How they were made
I wonder in awe
it was me and her
but there must be more

Such perfection I see
so there has to be
so much more than just us
so much more than just me

When they look at me
it is all they can see
I see it in their eyes
their love for me

I smell them, I watch them
growing so tall
I pick them back up
and never let them fall

It is simple and honest
straightforward no more
the love of your child
is the World, it is all

For they are my future
my hope and my life
I will love and protect them
to the day that I die

Poetryman
Copyright © 2011 by Mike Sutcliffe

Thursday 10 November 2011

Anthology of Poetry ~ Of Musings, Love and Life

This is the first time that I have written on my blog without loading a poem, which for some may be disappointing, however it is with great excitement that my first book has been published, an anthology of poetry titled "Of Musings, Love and Life". I know the old saying that everybody has at least one book in them, but I can finally say that mine is no longer in me, it is now in black and white, bound into a book that is now on sale. It is a slightly surreal feeling, but one that brings me great pride when, as I seem to do almost hourly, I flick through the pages with a broad grin across my face!

It has been 8 months since I decided to write the book, and it has been a fantastic journey, not just writing the actual poems, but also learning all of the elements required to get the idea into print and create a finished product. I know I am slightly biased, but it really is beautifully produced.

In the book you will find some very old favorites; The Lonely Tree, The Passing of Ages, Unconditional Love, Smoke Filled Rooms, Lay Down Your Guns, The Little Things and many more. I do hope that you will take the time to buy a copy and enjoy reading the poems as much as I have enjoyed writing them.

Initially the book is available via The Grove Bookshop http://www.grovebookshop.com/ telephone +44(0)1943 609335 or email to: info@grovebookshop.com. In due course it will be listed on Amazon and also made available in ebook format.

For now please enjoy the book and my thanks to all who stop by and read the poems on my blog, and hopefully to all those who will buy the book.

Preview

Monday 24 October 2011

By the fire

The flames glinted wildly, their reflection in my eyes,
all the laughter and the tears, so much joy in my life.
From the love and the loss, to the beauty of my child,
sometimes mellow, sometimes sad, and yet often it was wild.

When the flames began to settle, my future found its way,
in the beauty of her love, we had forever and a day.
Another was still waiting, we lived it to the full,
never parted for a moment, always laughter, never dull.

The flames flickered gently, it was dusk no longer dawn,
in my peace I could reflect, my face was tired and so worn,
as I came to see my past, with a smile behind my eyes,
all the joy my life had brought, sometimes tears fell from my eyes.

Then the flames no longer flickered, they had faded into ash,
yet forever in my memory, I had lived once in the past.

Copyright © 2011 by Mike Sutcliffe

Saturday 24 September 2011

If I Were ~ Part 2

If I were a bird
soaring high up in the sky
I would watch the world beneath
see the people and their lies

If I were a whale
wandering seas and oceans deep
I would hide beneath the waves
for my safety I must keep

If I were a lion
roaming through my vast kingdom
I would cower at their guns
until the hunters were all gone

If I were a man
with the world beneath my feet
I would rape it for myself
it is mine for me to keep

Poetryman
Copyright © 2011 by Mike Sutcliffe

Thursday 22 September 2011

My Window

Shadows pass never looking in
through murky glass the lights are dim
watching the world pass silently by
sometimes they laugh, sometimes they cry

To glimpse the others from deep within
some tall, some fat, some round, some thin
I wonder where their haste takes them
as I peer from deep within my den

Afraid to venture to the other side
where reality exists, you have to live life
such fear strikes through my fragile soul
behind my window growing ever old

A cocooned world of safety and light
hidden from life, hidden from sight

Poetryman
Copyright © 2011 by Mike Sutcliffe

Monday 12 September 2011

The Connection


Beep, beep. Beep beep
goes my text coming in
when I’m just pressing send
yes we did it again
it’s our pattern you see
being one
~ her and me

Way back in time
when my thoughts were just mine
I really couldn’t see
what she would truly mean
that this love could be
so real
~ for me

It may take it’s time
that love most don’t find
but one day it will rhyme
as you merge into one
with each others thoughts
playing just a single tone

This connection we found
after years milling around
until fate intervened
and made us
it seems,
finally be
we

Poetryman
Copyright © 2011 by Mike Sutcliffe

Wednesday 27 July 2011

Lay Down Your Guns

wars and crusades all fought in His name
they think they are sane
to kill in His name
but it won’t bring change, it’s completely in vain
just bystanders slain
and the lucky ones maimed

Muslims and Christians, Gentiles and Jews
to whom you call God, is your right
to choose
be it Buddha or Allah, Elohim or God
whatever you call him, killing
is not
what God was meant
to mean, no bombs on the streets
for innocence lost
is not about God

to temples and mosques and churches
you flee
to worship and pray, with such love
and glee
for He you kneel
and you pray and you heed
taking His words
as you want them to be, ignoring what they
should really mean

lay down your guns and your arms
and your bombs
for your bigoted hatred, will win over none
just leave you alone
at the foot of His throne

for the way that we live, for us and for me
should be in peace
alive, safe and free
so lay down your guns, please let it be
lay down your guns
and let us
live in peace

Poetryman
Copyright © 2011 by Mike Sutcliffe

Wednesday 13 July 2011

Hope Anew

Existing in the darkness of eternity
dreams lay amongst the waste
like splintered shards of light
shattered by pain now dulled

To live a life of day
in the confusing haze of chaos
wandering through shrouded mist
as a nomad in the storm

Searching for horizons
faint moonbeams in the dusk
glimpsing futures once thought lost
through hazy opaque eyes

The journey can begin
with steps that sometimes stumble
fates compass guides the way
as hope is born anew

Poetryman
Copyright © 2011 by Mike Sutcliffe

Wednesday 29 June 2011

The Start of Forever

How did it happen
the start of forever
I closed my eyes
thinking of never

One at a time
my days passed me by
the past still with me
living the lie

It felt like a dream
I did not know why
I must be asleep
my eyes closed tight

I woke from my slumber
you lay by my side
a vision appeared
my eyes opened wide

As time passed by
I finally could see
that forever was real
it had started for me

Poetryman
Copyright © 2011 by Mike Sutcliffe

Tuesday 31 May 2011

Drifting

Drifting, as a feather on the wind
at the mercy of elements
captured by freedoms grasp
~ to roam far

Lost souls smile through eyes of delight
whose direction is claimed
by flights of fancy
~ living on a whim

Loneliness strikes with a blade deep
to awaken the core
back to life’s reality
~ eyes open to truth

Poetryman
Copyright © 2011 by Mike Sutcliffe

Saturday 16 April 2011

Tomorrow

If it were tomorrow, what came before
My life skipped a beat, that day is no more
Where did I go, what did I see
Was it a good day, a good one for me

If I were to wish, for each day to pass
Looking ahead, please go fast
Tomorrow is the new, today is the old
I may pawn it away, my memories sold

If it were tomorrow, today left behind
Was it in vain, was I cruel or kind
Would I be poorer, with yesterday gone
Or simply oblivious, to all I had done

If I were to wish, what would it be
The loss of today, with no memory
Imagine it now, such a beautiful day
Each must be cherished, never sent away

Poetryman
Copyright © 2011 by Mike Sutcliffe

It is Better to Hide

Darkness not penetrated, your mask secure
Veiled from truth and fragility
With confidence high, standing tall
Feeling so strong, as you hide

The mask comes off, in solitude
Your castle is safe, none can get through
Don’t look in the mirror, all revealed
Even inside, you must hide

Glance for a moment, what will be seen?
Too terrible, real, who is there?
So weak I see, not recognised
Go now, run, please hide

Why are you here, in my mind?
I do not know you, go
Is that me? Don’t let it be
I will slip back behind, it is better to hide

Poetryman
Copyright © 2011 by Mike Sutcliffe

Friday 15 April 2011

Life in Colour

Dark not light, grey not bright
Is life like that, all of the time
Some see it black, some see it white
Some with the grey, bringing the night

There are doers and thinkers, nearly men
Always the same, throughout all of your friends
I would have and could have, are what they say
Life slipped them by, in every way

But some see the colours, wonderful and bright
They are vibrant and glowing, with life and light
A depth so deep, that you cannot see
But they can dream, in wonder and believe

Their eyes are open, so wide and true
For they are the ones who bring life, not you
I dare you to join them, set yourself free
Are your eyes open, be alive like me

Poetryman
Copyright © 2011 by Mike Sutcliffe

A Glimpse

There is life all around him, gleaming, teaming
His eyes open in wonder, a bird, a snail, a butterfly
Innocence shines in his smile, in his eyes
He looks on, just watching, not daring to move

Is he a part of this, nature at work?
He stands and wonders, in his awe and naivety
They told him of God, is this his doing?
It cannot be he thinks, there must be much more

It is living, connected, moving as one
Vibrant and flowing, vast and great
Is this the first time he has opened his eyes?
He feels suddenly so small, not tall

Mother is calling him, breaking the spell
Slowly, slowly, he retreats from this place
He has glimpsed for a moment, looking within
Time for tea now, turn the TV on

Poetryman
Copyright © 2011 by Mike Sutcliffe