Boy On Step

 

Dad said we would go today,
we would visit mum today.
Dad promised we would go yesterday too.
We didn’t go!
Dad sits crying but he wont tell me why.
He has sat crying for three days.
Everyday he says we’ll go and see mum.

Friends come round, sitting with dad,
they all give him a hug
and I get one too.
They all leave with tears in their eyes
looking at me,
ladies giving me big sloppy kisses.
I just want my mum!

Dad says we might not see mum anymore!
Where is she?
She was in hospital the other day,
she laughed and joked with me
but she was crying.
I asked her why she was crying
and dad brought me home.

Three days since I saw my mum.
She cooks better than dad.
He doesn’t bake cakes or anything!
I’m just going to sit on this step
until mum comes home!
I love my dad but,
I want my mum.

©2011 Trevor Litchfield

Life By Committee

Life By Committee first appeared on Trev's Telautograph on Monday 28th February 2011

Everyone has smiles on faces,
All say they are trying to do their best.
A future is decided by committee,
It’s the best choice for one and all.

Did they listen to the one it concerns?
The one sat quietly in the corner.
Observing without taking part,
All voices louder than hers.

Agreements are made, hands are shook.
More smiley faces as names are signed.
Papers pass from folder to folder,
All designed to make life easy.

Who has to live this decision?
Not those signatures, that’s for sure.
She sits quietly, on her own,
They are adults, they know best.

Now the room is quiet again,
She stares at artwork on the wall.
Lost in a time and place of her own,
Accepting her fate, resigned.

©2011 Trevor Litchfield

Today my tears are for you.

Today my tears are for you. first appeared on Trev's Telautograph on Sunday 27th February 2011

Walking through the estate late in the evening,
The sound of an Ice Cream vans tune
comes echoing over the houses
Shattering the silence.
The Teddy Bears Picnic: Surreal.
The tune reawakens memories of a time lost,
My chest aches at the memories,
Of the fields of tall grass,
As we innocently rolled together,
Flattening long paths,
We held each other close.

Standing in my room, lights out, curtains open.
Street lighting casts long shadows.
The screeching of tyres can be heard in the distance
The estate holds it’s breath
Waiting for the inevitable, metal on metal.
Memories of blood wash through my mind.
We lost you that day,
Yet others walked: Unscathed!
My mind still reels at the loss.
A life lost forever.
Today my tears are for you.

©2011 Trevor Litchfield

A bottle with no cap

A bottle with no cap First appeared on Trev's Telautograph on December 14th 2010


It hits me in waves like surf on the beach
Continually hitting and tossing me around
Covering me completely as the tide comes in
The current taking hold and drags me out
At times like this I’m a bottle with no cap
No choice but to succumb to the journey

If the bottle fills then I am lost, drowning
I slowly sink barely attempting to fight
I would refuse the hand of salvation
As I know I have declined in the past
I would shut the world out, locking the door
Despairing in solitude, giving up the fight.

If the bottle half fills, the tide carries me
I could float for days with no sight of land
Hope barely a flicker but the light is on
To get washed up on some new shore
Like so much flotsam on a deserted beach
Ragged and exhausted, to tired to fight

Whichever way the tides have taken me
The journey is one of despair, self loathing
Mind shutting down to feed on itself
Ignoring all help, denying to even try
The world outside is an alien landscape
Taking months to acclimatise once again

©Trevor Litchfield

What This Soul Needs

Might it be a summers heat
offering warmth to my back?
Is it the soft and gentle breeze
taking all my thoughts from me?
Could it be springs sparkling rain
promising new growth from old?

Is it the feel of a hand in mine
soft gentle fingers entwined?
Or might it be a gentle caress
lips touching mine so tenderly?
Could it be deep searching eyes
finding depths I cannot see?

To be at peace within this life
my soul needs to find new fruits
I need more than life’s intimacies
to give this soul a life renewed.
What this soul is searching for
is peace within body and soul.

©2010 Trevor Litchfield

Notes To Self

When life’s getting heavy,
go for a walk and enjoy natures wonders.
When life drags you down,
sit by the river watching nature pass by.
When you can’t face the world,
sit amongst the trees listening to natures song.
When you don’t know where to turn,
commune with yourself, there is always an answer.

When you need some space,
try to remember others need space too.
When everything annoys you,
they are but fleeting and will soon pass.
When you feel like shouting,
write, talk, relax, do anything that helps.
When all seems lost,
a new life came into this world, take heart.

©2010 Trevor Litchfield

Remberance

 Not published anywhere else, I've hidden this on here though, it is something of a personal poem

Remberance

Can you see what I see, can you? Do you want to look?
There is no light, is it dark? There must be something!
I can see shapes, I can’t see you! Can you see yet?
There was something, now it’s gone, there were shapes!
Are you still there? It is dark! There is no light
I could see shapes, not movement, where are you?
You said you would look! You can’t see at all!
You wanted to see what I see; now you’re gone!

Can you feel what I feel, can you? Do you want to touch?
It is soft, I’m sure it is, what is it that I feel?
There is hair, it must be hair, is that your head?
It is so soft and long, why don’t you feel it to?
You must feel it; I had it in my hand! I know I did
Where has it gone, it was there! Why don’t you touch?
You said you would touch! You can’t feel at all!
You wanted to feel what I feel; now you’re gone!

Can you hear what I hear, can you? Do you want to listen?
It is soft and gentle, I can hear water. Surely you hear it to
Water in the stream, flowing over pebbles and reeds
You can’t hear it can you? I know you can’t, you’re not there
I wish you could hear it, listen to the water like I do
But it has gone and so have you, why don’t you listen?
You said you would listen but you never listened to me
You wanted to hear what I hear and now I’m on my own.

©Trevor Litchfield

Road To Somewhere

We travel this road all our lives with a vision dreamed in our youth.
At intervals crossroads approach, offering us alternate destinations.
One way threatens arduous toil or maybe health and contentment.
The alternate offers less labour, perhaps heartbreak or damnation.

Unknowing which road would lead to a more desirable conclusion.
We take our choice through faith, or is it fate we follow blindly?
Demands made by cherished take precedence over our own desires.
We travel this highway, our choices made and filed for posterity.

We reach the end of our journey taking time to evaluate our path.
Mind and body worn, preparing for the everlasting rest that ensues.
We will be remembered for our choices by those that treasured us.
Just ease our earthly presence to rest, perpetual peace we are due.

©2010Trevor Litchfield

Poem (no title)

The sun rises over the still sleeping city,
Early birds pecking at dew laden grass.
High clouds drift with the morning breeze,
Thundering trucks delivering early goods.

Buses come alive, humanity begins to stir,
Dog walkers and joggers enter the parks,
Cyclists filling the tracks and paths.
Scattering the early morning feeders.

The sounds of the day begin to build,
Until at last the day reaches full volume.
Once again the city comes to life,
Full of dreams and desires started anew.

Money is earned and spent even quicker,
Someone laughs, another one cries,
New lives found and old ones lost.
Where do I belong amongst it all?

©Trevor Litchfield

Wet and Cold

There’s a hole in my shoe, my socks are wet
My feet are cold, I have to keep walking
If I keep walking it will help keep me warm
My coat is dripping, clothes underneath damp

Soon I will be shivering but I’ll keep walking

My trousers are soaked, drips from my coat
My legs are cold, drips getting down my back
I have to keep walking to generate some heat
I am now so cold, I shiver as I walk, keep walking

When will I get there, will it be warm and dry?

I can only think about the cold and the wet
I must keep walking, I can’t stop now
My feet are so cold; I can barely feel my toes
My coat is getting heavy, the water coming through
I am so cold! I have to keep walking