INSIDE ON THE OUTSIDE

Shall we all become one?
Where trivialities are gone,
Hatred and bigotry
Jealousy and poverty
Reduced to none.
Pierce the membrane
Release the hurricane,
Happiness and togetherness
Godliness and cleanliness
All on the same plane.
Surreptitious becomes delicious
Thoughts and deeds nutritious,
Dip a toe
Create a ripple,
Suckle the world
Offer a nipple.
Inside on the outside
It can be a free ride,
Stand tall, share it all
Halt the fall, make the call
Make the world a new bride.
A place to discover
Lost sisters and a brother,
Over any land, lend a hand
Unplanned, understand
Make all your friend or lover.
Inside on the outside
It cannot be denied,
Open your mind to mankind
Put the world in rewind
At least then, you would have tried.

Phil Hall  October 2013

FIRE IN THE SKY

Sunrise
There's a fire in the sky
Burning horizon,
I see you, your eyes
Molten thoughts
And you rise proud.
The flaming cloud
Hides a nakedness,
As your delicate feet
Tiptoe on silken water.
I see you, your form
The thunder, the storm,
Shattering illusions
Caressing the heavens
With a promise.
Kissed,
Blessed,
The day belongs to you.
Colours abound,
Natures Michael Angelo
The world his easel.
The sky his chapel,
One sky,
A glint in the eye.
Sunset,
Its last hurrah
Stretching forth
Clinging, sinking into the abyss.
Streamers of a blazing dream
Pull at your heart,
Forget me not it pleads
The seed of the sun is planted
In all of us.
The light goes out
The colours die.
Just the faded memory
Of the sky.

Phil Hall  October 2013

Photographer: Steve Hiner. 2013.

JACK O' THE GREEN

Only in England
Can he be seen,
The shaking tree
The Jack O' the green.
Not in a pot
Not in a tub,
He's usually found
Outside a pub.
With morris men
And dancing girls,
Clashing sticks
Bells and twirls.
The Jack O' the green
Comes the 1st of May,
But, it's October
I hear you say.
Well like I said
This is an English trait,
He'll pop up
At any country fair or fete.
From pagan times
He's had his place,
In English folklore
The green smiling face.

Phil Hall October 2013

PEACE AND QUIET

Shh!
Take a moment,
Listen.......

Nice isn't it?
Peace and quiet,
Time to reflect.

Phil Hall October 2013

IDIOTS

The world is full of idiots
Wankers, arseholes and twats,
Also, dickheads and fuckwits
And countless stupid prats.
Let me put meat on the bones
And substantiate what I've to say,
It's about when I get in my car
All the above come out to play.
Foglights when it's clear
Full beams dazzling my eyes
And the boy racer who cut me up
Well, I hope that bastard dies.
The ones who pull out of junctions
And make you swerve or brake,
To them who never indicate
And bikers who undertake.
The ones who sit in the outside lane
The tossers who use their phone,
The ones who're too close behind
They really make me moan.
Queue jumpers on motorways
Off roaders with bull nose bars
Why do so many people become an idiot
The moment they get in their cars?.
Phil Hall  October 2013

WAR BIRD

As I travel through my city
I'm reminded of a beautiful bird,
A living creature of grace and power
And christened with just one word...
Spitfire.
She spread her wings
An age ago in an English sky,
To dance with death
The 'Battle of Britain' up on high...
Spitfire.
Poles, Canadians, Czech and more
With her bravely flew,
The might of the luftwaffe defeated
By the Spitfire
And the glorious few.
I see the war bird everyday
Queen of the Royal Air Force,
Proudly flying where she was born
In Castle Bromwich, Birmingham
Of course.
A reminder of the heroes who flew
And saved our nation at wars start,
The beautiful Spitfire and her sister the Hurricane
Forever in Birmingham's heart.

Phil Hall  October 2013.

HARVEST

Tears of joy
Anguish and pain,
The renewal of life
With life ebbing
Down the drain.
Alone the wife
With heavy heart,
Gods will gives
A family's start.
The harvest festival
In a sterile scene,
A blessing to one
About end to what's been.
Organs prized and packed
With tender love and care,
Relatives grief is tempered
By lifes gift to share.
Soon the light
Rekindled and reborn,
The darkness only temporary
New life sworn.
Our gift to the world
Ours is the right,
The harvest gives us
A chance to delight.
Ones sacrifice
For what he holds dear,
Breathing hope for others
Our reason to be here,
He gave the harvest
It's the reason we are here.

Phil Hall  October 2013

THE WORLD ON MY DOORSTEP

Hills and valleys for ever here
Firs, spruce and pine reaching tall,
Sky of arctic blue, chilled winds breath on ones face
Is this Tunguska?
When the beams of light appear
Piercing the darkness,
Followed by the shadowy sedan
Is it a James Bond villain?
Some sultry, femme fatale?
Is this the hills of Monte Carlo?
Deer flit mysteriously in shadowy groves
And ferns grow tall,
An owl hoots in the pine scented labyrinth.
Is this a Scandinavian forest?
Where snow bends the trees into submission?
A place where water flows
Where fish are caught in sparkling jewels of ponds,
Where youngsters run barefoot with nets.
Is this the Amazon?
Do monsters lurk in the depths?
One can sit on top of the world
A castle proudly surveying the kingdom,
Is this Camelot?
Do dragons fight with knights of lore?
I sit atop the pine forested hills
Below me a manicured expanse of green,
Golfers in their garish attire
Walk and swing away.
Is this Aspen, Gleneagles or Carnoustie?

This is 'The Lickeys'
The world on my doorstep,
A magical place where I grew up
An adventure playground of nature and wonder.
Where love was discovered,
Friendships forged and a love of nature blessed.
The hills 'Beacon', 'Rose' and 'Bilberry' surround the valley of my childhood.
This heaven sent wonder is on the edge of Birmingham, England.
When we were small and money was tight,
The Lickey hills was our escape
The whole world from the Amazon to the forests of Norway
Here on our doorstep.
I now travel the world,
But, I'll always have a special place in my heart
For the Lickeys
The world on my doorstep.

Phil Hall  October 2013

AGNES

When I was a little boy
And wore short trousers
To my school,
We poked fun at others
Less fortunate
So now I feel a fool.
One boy at church
We called humpty dumpty,
Because he had enormous head
He suffered with hydrocephalus
And now, he's no doubt dead.
One boy wore callipers
To improve his awkward gait,
Another suffered sleep apnoea
And always got to school late.
Then there was little Agnes
A sister to a boy in my year,
She was a downs syndrome child
And all of our class loved her.
She wore ribbons in her hair
Waved and smiled to all of us,
When we were in the playground
And she was on the special bus.
At the Christmas party
She was allowed to come and dance,
I remember the tune was 'Telstar'
Her little feet did prance.
She left a mark on all of us
With her funny little face,
Her indelible smile imprinted deep
Her aura stayed in place.
I hope she had a full life
As we left to go our separate ways,
It wasn't easy for downs syndrome kids
In those far off days.
She had the love of her family,
Church congregation and the school
I grew up fast after meeting Agnes,
Treat all the same became the rule.
That beautiful little girl was an angel
Who showered love everywhere.
I just hope she led a full, happy life
In a world that isn't always fair.

Phil Hall October 2013

MORE ALTERNATIVE NURSERY RHYMES

Jack Spratt
Was so fat
And his wife
Was so obscene,
They both needed emergency ops
Thank god for the bariatric team.

Wee Eddie Miliband
Canvassing the town,
Trying to clear up the mess
Made by Gordon Brown.
Promises and pledges
In a speech full of fight,
But he'll never beat the Tories
Because his policies are shite.

Three pubic lice
Three pubic lice
See how they itch,
When you caught them
You did scream
You were put on a course
Of a genital cream,
It looked like your nuts
Were turning green
Just to get rid of
Three pubic lice.

Scary Mary
Away with the fairy
How does your cannabis grow?
With water
And at night
Artificial light
And marijuana plants
All in a row.

Phil Hall  October 2013

THE OP'

White
Bright light,
Swimming thoughts
Nerves taut.
Smiles sported
Voices distorted,
Minutes pass
Inhaling gas,
Echoing talk
Floating walk.
Blurring shapes
Needles and tapes,
Brilliant white pavilion
Sliding into oblivion.
"Philip! Philllippp, lip lip ip ip ip!"
I hear my name
But, it's not the same,
My voice unheard
Silent word.
Blue sky drapes
Blurred moving shapes.
This is absurd
I'm now a bird,
Hovering over me
This is what I see,
Bleeps and bellows heard.
Awake, yet asleep
In coma deep,
Knives and clips
Drugs and drips
My body they safely keep.
I'm atop the tower
Over a field of flowers,
Jump? I've no choice
From the darkness a voice
Where seconds were hours.
My mind turns around
The constant beeping sound,
Friendly eyes in a mask
Completed their task
My body returns to the ground.
Replete from strife
Surviving the knife,
The bleeps and bellows
Masked angels and fine fellows
Everyday..... Help save a life.

Phil Hall October 2013

ALL OR NOTHING

We are here
Then we are gone,
All or nothing
Everything to none,
It happens to you
To everyone.
All or nothing
In an instant
You're gone.

Kings and Queens
Beggars and thieves
Drop like flies
Or falling leaves,
All or nothing
One believes
Sweet salvation
To one who grieves
You shone.

All or nothing
Nothing or all
Do you rise
Or do you fall?
The Lord or Satan
Who gives the call?
Is it heaven
Or fireball?
Choose one.

Phil Hall  October 2013

MY SHOWER MEETS THE NANNY STATE

Just when I thought the world
Was mad enough
No! It had to get worse,
The meddling and interfering
Nanny state
Has issued another curse.
Not content with stopping
The rolling of cheese
Down a hill,
Or dancing morris men
Outside a pub
Dipping for apples
Will make you ill.
They've now decided
What's best for me
I can't believe their power,
They've regulated the heat
With which I can take a shower!
It's true
When the thermostat
Reaches a certain temp,
It bloody switches itself off.
So now I'm stood here
Covered in soap and shivering
I'm sure to develop a cough.
Now I love a hot shower
The hottest that it can get,
I don't need a stupid regulation
Saying how high it should be set.
I yearn for the days of freedom
And the individual rights
Of our proud nation,
But now
I get soap stinging my eyes
And freeze to death
All because of the nanny states
Fear of litigation.

(So thanks to all the idiots who claim compensation for getting;
Scalded for drinking a hot coffee,
Cutting yourself on a sharp knife,
Falling down a hole that was infront of you,
Slipping over on ice etc etc)

Phil Hall  October 2013

THE MEADOW

Behold the view of England fair
Of meadowsweet and grass swept along,
Where skylark raises her brood
And above, her love sprinkles his song.
From crooked bough of weathered oak
Proud robin voices his challenge from hearty breast,
Whilst cows in scattered abandon
Under ripening sun
Gaze through childlike eyes at a scene so blessed.
The rolling fields dotted with snow and golden coin
With buttercup and daisy flowers in starlike acclaim,
The meadow swells with the fullness of life
Fruitful hedgerows ring the carpet of Englands plain.
Peace now reigns where blood did flow
When Roundheads fought the Cavaliers,
Cannon thunder and the battles roar
Replaced by insects contented hum to soothe our tired ears.
The English meadow, a freedom from lifes rigours
In deep thought, or holding hands with a lover,
The sights, the smells and sounds of utter serenity
Step over the stile, it's there for you to discover.

Phil Hall  October 2013

THE SUN SETS ON THE WORLD

As day turns to darkest night
And birds return from random flight,
Children lie in comfy beds curled
Above all this the sun sets on the world.

An horizon of flame shimmering bright
Melting away to leave night,
The sky draws a veil on the day,
The orb with its life giving fire
Slips gently away to retire
To rise the other side of the world.

The harvest moon grants its gift
Giving darkness and evil short thrift,
All around lifes stresses are hurled
All the agonies of humanity unfurled
As the sun sets once more
On the world.

Phil Hall  October 2013

DEATH OF AN ISLAND

Look at their hand
They wear a wristband,
Unwittingly contributing
To the death of an island.

Don't you see what you're doing?
One day you'll be ruing
The beauty of choice, having no voice,
With the death of an island.

Can't you see?
All inclusive
To the locals exclusive,
Taking their living
To Multinationals giving
This is out of hand
The death of an island.

The locals
They suffer
As they try to give succour,
With food and drink
You should pause to think
About the death of an island.

The restaurants
And the bars
To the taxi drivers cars,
Custom denied
As in the hotel you hide
You are killing the livelihood
Of an island.

Why Barbados?
When you don't see the land
You stay close at hand
To mass produced food,
The culture subdued
You're assisting in the death of an island.

Sprawling hotels
And manicured golf courses
Are stripping the resources,
Crops are no more
Local business closing their door
This is the death knell of an island.

It's all take and no give
The all inclusive,
With your grab all wristband
You could be on any island
Though the local economy
Drains like a sieve.

In my favourite island Barbados
Did the Brazilians give a toss,
When 'The Ship' closed for the last time?
No! They sat round the pool not spending a dime
Only the locals and people like me felt the loss.

Phil Hall  October 2013

THE LADY OF THE SEA

"The boat that picked her up was the 'Belleisles' her sex was no sooner made known to the men, whose hearts were made of the right stuff, that she was quickly attired with articles of clothing"
                         A British Lieutenant
                         Hms Revenge
                         21/10/1805
                         Cape Trafalgar.

                  JEANETTE

She was pulled naked from the sea
After the destruction of L'Achille,
Her ship was sent to a watery grave
British sailors to a man so brave
Plucked many to safety.

Jeanette, her only known name
She's now legend of Trafalgar fame,
She fed the guns in valiant fervour
But lady luck would desert her
L'Achille would soon be aflame.

The proud ship fought hard and long
Revenge and Swiftsure proved too strong,
Broadsides took many to hell that day
Then Prince joined in the fray
And L'Achille sang her last song.

The Prince fired with savage ire
Slaughter reigned, then came the fire,
Jeanette cowering amidst the gore
Fearing a grave on the sea floor
All hope gone, heaven her only desire.

Through an open port salvation came
As molten lead burnt her naked frame,
She fell to the waiting ocean
Amongst the drowning and commotion.
The lady of the sea, Jeanette thy name.

In a plume of furnace heat
L'Achille exploded in fiery sheet,
Jeanette clung to life, she cried
For her countrymen who'd died
And her saviours she'd soon meet.

The English came to save the foe
Their tenderness was on full show,
The feared Tars showed a new face
Humility and compassion set in place,
Never faltering when the winds came a blow.

The Revenge took her to its heart
In her fashioned dress she looked so smart,
To a man the English sailors cheered
When her thought dead husband suddenly appeared
He'd survived the battle also, after playing a gallant part.

At Gibraltar the battered ships were arrayed
Scars of battle and death displayed,
The prisoners of war awaited their fate
But, Jeanette was freed with her soulmate
With gifts of money the English sailors made.

The lady of the sea is now in history set
We still  only know her first name and yet,
Saved from the waves in a battles rage
She is remembered now on historic page
Wherever you lay, rest in peace brave Jeanette.

Phil Hall  October 2013

Authors note.

Reference:

Trafalgar; The biography of a battle.
By Roy Adkins
Publisher: Abacus
Picture from the book.
"Jeanette rescued from the sea"
Artist unknown. Possibly Thomas Whitcombe.

Ships mentioned in poem.

Combined fleet French/Spanish Navies

L'Achille  74 guns. (Destroyed)
Captain Gabriel Denieport.

English Royal Navy.

HMS Revenge  74 guns.
Captain Robert Moorsom.

HMS Prince  98 guns.
Captain Richard Grindall.

HMS Swiftsure  74 guns.
Captain William George Rutherford.

Mentioned in quote;

HMS Belleisle 74 guns.
Captain William Hargood.

     "Palmam qui meruit ferat"

WIDE ASLEEP

My mind is alert
Awake and strong,
But my soul's asleep
So, so wrong
For so long now
Thoughts dark and deep.
Through marbled halls
Drifting on my lifes song,
Floating quietly on memories tide
Eyes wide open all along.
Wide asleep,
My soul wide asleep,
Though I see you all the time
And your love I'll treasure
Your love I'll always keep,
I'll continue my journey
With my soul wide asleep.
When the palms sway
And of you I pray,
Although my soul slumbers
My thoughts with you stay.
A moment alone in the sun
I remember your smile
Our laughter and fun,
My soul sleeps
While I'm alone
And back to you I'll run.
The sea beckons
Waves crash on lonely beach
The shoreline steep,
I'll be awake again soon
Leaving marbled halls behind
No more wide asleep
Free from these thoughts deep.

Phil Hall  October 2013

PREDATOR LOVES JAZZ

Whilst on a walk through the city
I happened upon a sight,
Accompanying the sound of jazz
Was a vision of strange delight.
It was a gyrating alien
The predator from cinema fame,
He was bristling with weaponry
But, his appearance was rather tame.
He danced and waved at children
And rattled his trophy bones,
He had his photo taken often
And was video'd on mobile phones.
The band kept up their quick tempo
And predator smiled with his ghastly face,
I don't suppose he'd heard much jazz
Coming from outer space.
Birmingham is full oddments
An ancient church next to a space age store,
So this dancing alien fitted in nicely
My city will no doubt see some more.

BLOODY BONEYS NOSE

I've got to go my Rosie
I'm going to war pretty Rose,
King George has sent for me
To bloody old Boneys nose.

And where the flag flies my love
The English soldier goes,
Where the shilling can be spent
We'll bloody Boneys nose.

Walk the meadows so steep
Rosie please tend my sheep,
King George wants my labour
Across the ocean so blue and deep.

Because where the union flag flutters
And the boots harden my toes,
The English army marches hard
To bloody old Boneys nose.

Save me my seat at the inn Rosie
Pour me that draught of finest ale,
I'll be home soon to bed my wench
And caulk or yarn old Boneys tale.

I stormed the breach at Badajoz
With the Frogs we had a quarrel,
The forlorn hope bloodied Boneys nose
And for that I won my laurels.

So this Englishman is coming home
To my Rosie my sweetheart and love,
We haven't won the war yet Rosie
But, we've given Boney a hell of a shove.

I've got to go my Rosie
I'm going to war pretty Rose,
King George has sent for me
To bloody old Boneys nose.

Phil Hall  October 2013

UNDER THE MISTY MOOR

The rain falls steadily
Turning the granite to glass,
Blackened pots stacked in disarray
Sea birds wait en masse.
The boats are returning
Holds crammed with fresh fish,
To be sold to local eateries
A chefs signature dish.

Sitting in a tree lined gorge
This village on the Atlantic coast,
Is nestled under a brooding misty moor
Which has a terrifying boast.
The fog shrouded wilderness
Is home to a savage beast,
Many have witnessed the huge black cat
And the mutilated sheep on which it did feast.

A sky of portent and full of doom
Heather and bracken a sodden morass,
Jutting teeth of blackened rock
The moor folds low with tree scrubbed pass.
Where locals shelter in the nooks
And feeble light holds the moor at bay,
Night hours belong to the black, prowling beast
Hark the sunrise is for what people pray.

Daylight brings a differing scene
The moor is carpeted in a floral hue,
Birds and insects work in fevered joy
Sheep and ponies dotted under radiant sky so blue.
Centuries have past with little change
The moor rules for miles around,
Man has learned to live within its grip
And respect the power of this hallowed ground.

Phil Hall  October 2013