What do I hear?

What do I hear
I wonder 
If I shut my eyes I can hear you
Talking to me
That’s not true silly
She giggles
You hear me all the time
When you are awake 
When you are asleep 
When you are walking around the streets 
Thinking to yourself
Walking in rhythm 
With the song I am humming
I cast her a smile
Thank you Alice
For always being there 
She smacks her lips in her approval
That we are together 
Sharing the days and nights 
There are some things I like to hear
The sound of birds waking up
The sound of rain gently falling 
On summer paths 
Our footsteps 
More solid and steady these days 
I like gentle voices
Clear and careful speech 
Only a few people don’t have the urge to shout 
That sound I do not like 
Loud voices rarely have anything important to say 
Some days it feels like
I hear everything
When my skin is full of electricity 
And everything is overwhelming 
Then I do have to close my eyes
Make the room dark 
Over the years 
I have learnt how to survive 
The things I do not like to hear 
For now all I have to focus on is 
The sound of my breath
My heartbeat beating in my chest 
What do I hear 
I ask myself again 
The noise of life 
A life we thought we would never have
And for that 
We are forever grateful.

Sounds

The world is never completely silent
Even in our room 
There are sounds 
The ticking over of the refrigerator 
The clank of the metal tea spoon
Stirring milk into the tea
Alice smiles
We like our morning tea
It soothes us
Warm as honey and sweet peas
A good way to begin again
The sky is cloudy but calm
We open the window
Welcome in another day
The birds sing 
Such a jubilant song
A 4 o’clock wake up call
One we always hear
We like the early morning 
When the world feels 
Like our own
Before the banging and clashing
Dogs barking 
People shouting 
Loud noise scares us
We feel it inside
It is something more than hearing 
A primal fear 
Fight or flight
It makes our pulse soar
Our breathing quicken 
Sometimes we have to curl up
In a tight ball 
Just to wait until it passes 
We try and tell ourselves it is just noise
But it ushers in a lot of stories 
Our past 
Our fears
But for now we embrace the bird song 
Enjoy pouring sounds 
Onto paper
Alice hums
I tap my fingers on the desk
We would not want complete silence
Sounds are the rhythm of life.

Brambles

We trample through the brambles

They are soft after the 

Night time rain 

Alice hums a tune

I look at the sky

It is cloudy and grey

Hopefully the mists will clear 

Be swept away 

By the rising sun 

She leaps over a puddle

It makes me smile

To see her untethered 

Free and young 

I have an urge to scrawl 

My name on a tree

To prove I have been here

Broken the rituals 

Had a moment of liberation 

Like a bee

Determinately heading for 

The cracks in the hive

Busy on its mission to harvest pollen 

We take a deep breath

Welcome in another day 

Today we will enjoy our words

Feel the softness of cotton on our skin

Walk on cobblestones

Drink golden sweet tea 

And always

Always

Remember the magical sounds

Of brambles splintering 

Under our feet. 

Something Small

I catch hold of her hand
It sits easy in my palms
Small 
But not frail
Her bones are delicate 
Like a bird’s 
And like the blue-tits and robins
Who perch on the cherry blossom tree
They are strong
Able to weather the wind
And the rain 
Today there is mist
It is slippery under foot
That is why we reach for each other
As if held together
We will be stronger still
I move my fingers to her wrist 
Feel her pulse
It is steady and sure
Full of life
And love
She hums a tune 
It travels through the morning clouds
Starts our day off well
Later we will sit behind the window
Get lost in our thoughts
And our words 
Travel to far off places
Marvel at the little things
Raindrops falling on leaves 
Ladybirds flying from flower head to flower head
I curl my fingers tighter around her
Trying to absorb her energy 
Her being 
She squeezes her hand in return
No need for talking
Like electricity 
We are connected
At once two people
And one 
As the mist clears we head back 
Climb the stairs
Open the door
Hoping it will be quiet
We like silence 
Space 
Room to think 
We take a sip of tea
Like her hands
It is the small things in life 
That matter
That make us who we are. 

Whale

Her skin is smooth and soft

Wondrous 
It glimmers and shines 
Beneath the bright moon sky
She glides through the water
Smooth as a silk glove
Cresting the waves
Bobbing up for air
She is the queen of the ocean
And when we close our eyes
We can still see her
The rhythm of her swimming 
Soothes us
Steady as a pulse
It takes us away from the banging 
Loud in our head
Unwanted and unwelcome 
We hold hands as we fly amongst the stars
Alice is excited
I can feel 
We are bordering on dream time
Drowsy and happy 
Seeing the freedom of the water
The gigantic form of the whale 
Beneath us 
She travels alone 
Perhaps to feed
To reach safer water
To find others of her kind
We hope we will be able to see her destination
But fear we will wake up before that 
The magic is in seeing her glide
Beautifully 
Effortlessly
As if her weight is no more than a feather 
We smile
Look at each other 
Perhaps we are seeing more of the world
Far beyond the window 
And the cherry blossom tree
Perhaps one day we will be lucky enough
To go on a new adventure
Every day is an adventure
She whispers on the crest
Of the wind
Hair flying behind her
Dress bobbing on the currents
We will always remember this 
The path of the whale
Like us it moves
All of us on a journey
All of us at peace 
Crowned with a glitter of excitement
A jetting blow hole of hope. 

Church

We watch the squirrels 

From our window

Scrambling up the tree

Alice giggles

Pretends to throw them nuts 

We drink tea

Wait for the sun to come up

The mist to drift away 

From the weeds

The earth to even out 

Today we hope to walk

Past the church

To hear the singing inside

Voices raised in exultation 

A certain amen 

All will be well

Be calm

Be still 

We forget how many times

We have said that prayer

Quietly in our head

To keep us safe in dangerous times 

To remind us of dancers

Carefree and joyous

Twirling in their silver robes 

A happier time and place

We like the smell of the church

Stone and damp

A measure of time passed there

Wooden pews and railings worn down

From passing hands and feet 

When it is raining we like to go inside

Sit in the silence

Light a candle 

Measure our thoughts

We drain our cups

Lick our lips

Lock the door 

And head out on our journey 

Our adventure for today

The safety and sanctuary of church. 

All I want Is...

What do you want

She asks

Looking up at my eyes

I stop and think for a moment 

It is new

Thinking about wants

And needs

She chews a stick of candy

Patiently waiting for my reply

All I want is peace and quiet

A happy life

A blue sky

Clouds 

Soft rain 

Singing birds

The earth beneath my feet

She swallows with a crack and a gulp

Giggles quietly and claps her hands

That sounds perfect 

She declares

I like happy and peace too

It makes our heart slow

Our breathing regulate

Soft as the sea

It makes us see 

What could be 

What we could have

Hold it tight like treasure 

Love and hope 

Shining golden as the sun

A summertime feeling inside

The one that makes the 

Cherry tree grow and bloom

The scent wafting in 

Through the open window

What about you Little Cricket

Easy she exclaims

All I want is you

And she smiles

And it reaches my lips 

Warm as toast.  

A Moment In History

The moment he wrote you
He created history
You are the girl who fell down 
The Rabbit Hole
The girl who could solve riddles
The young woman who defeated 
The Red Queen 
Fearless
Brave
Questioning 
I can picture your fall
The floating of your
Blue dress as you fell
The dust that may have landed
On your shiny black shoes
The impatience in you
Trying to catch Rabbit
It’s late
It’s late 
You were strong enough 
To take tea with Hatter 
Your manners impeccable 
At the table
Just like you were taught 
Just as we remember you
The story he gave us
The girl we know who was real
Unable to grow up
But wise 
Always wise
You survived Wonderland 
After all 
I treasure the pages
The history of you
I find comfort in knowing 
That he is no longer in charge 
Of your story
I will keep you safe
I know
She whispers
Sitting on my window sill
Now perhaps we can create 
A new moment 
Still anchored in the past 
But stretching for something new
Waking up by the riverside 
Looking into the amber sun
You are my summer
A lesson learnt 
Frozen in time 
But breathing.  

Waves

We slip under the waves

It cools our skin

We wiggle our toes

They brush the pebbles

Smooth as marble 

Our pulse flickers 

With every wave of salt 

The birds are chanting 

In the dark

Filling the void

As bright as stars 

We feel less restless 

More complete

As if our soul 

Has been given

A second chance 

The clouds fan out 

High in the sky

Cover the stars 

Hold us tight 

Like an embrace 

Perhaps today 

The sun will shine again

We will walk on the grass

Let the canopy of the trees

Shelter us 

It is good to be

She whispers

Ands slowly

Certainly

I agree. 

Tiny Poems

Tiny Poems

One 

What can we write 

In a tiny poem

Two

We can say how your cheeks glow

Pink and soft

Like fresh peaches

We can say how your smile

Lights up my day 

Three

We can say how beautiful you are

How you saved my life

And let me bloom 

We can say how sweet

Tea and cakes taste with you 

Four 

We can say how you shine

Like the sun 

How your giggles

Make me smile

Five

We can say in these tiny poems

How much I love you. 

Night Sky

The sun shines through the window

We cast our eyes

At the blue and orange

Hear the birds singing 

In the blossoming tree

Alice hums a tune

I nod my head in time

We are happy 

Quietly sitting together

Letting the days drift by

Enjoying the minutes

Marvelling at the passing of an hour

We dream of the sea

Splashing our feet

In the cool salty water

Letting the sand crumble

In between our toes

It is new

To dream

Usually we stand at the window

In the middle of the night

Hoping the clouds

Don't cover the stars 

Cloud their magic

We like the cover of dark

It wraps around us

Like a blanket

The moon watching over us

Like a mother 

It's milky white nourishing our soul 

We let the air brush our face

Breathe in deeply

After a good day

Comes a good night 

And before us will be the wonder of special moments

A beautiful night sky. 

Pebble

We are laden with shiny pebbles

We carry them like shadows 

In the night

The clouds are scattered 

Over the empty forest

The stars have vanished

Hidden behind

The thick night clouds 

The ghosts and the birds

Mingle in the air

Like magic

She giggles 

We remember the days 

When we had blisters 

On our skin

Sore and weeping 

So much pain

So many marks

Left behind 

Not quite the past

Something to leave behind

In the future 

We open the window

Take a gasp of midnight air 

All is still and quiet

We finger the pebbles

In our pocket

It soothes us

They are cool and smooth

We will gradually wear them down

With our finger tips

A marker of time passing

A reminder that we are still alive. 

Word

What's your favourite word

She asks

As the rain falls 

On the window sill

It is three o'clock in the morning 

Quiet and still

I stop and think

I am not sure

I reply

I like soft words

Like moon and sugar

She giggles

Her approval 

What about happy and peaceful

I like those too I say 

They roll off the tongue

Easier these days 

What about you Little Cricket

What's your favourite word

Easy she replies

Adventure

Every day is one 

Except it is safer here

With you 

I look into her eyes

Sparkling blue 

Shiny as stars 

I feel the same 

Safe with you 

We will splash through puddles

Let the sky kiss our cheeks 

There are so many new words

That might become our favourites.