brother believe in your silver-spangled skill-set stand on the shore, survey the scene let your guitar sing, reverberate those rhythms play it again boy, play it with ease
brother believe in your power and your glory step all aboard, anchors set free dive into those oceans, manipulate that music play it all night boy, play with the breeze
brother believe, bring back your tall tales return to the harbour, head held high hold fast to the memories, they’ll last you a lifetime play with your youth boy, play and believe.
*****
This is in honour of my young brother Doug, who sets off today for Barcelona and beyond, playing his guitar and delighting cruise passengers aplenty. He’s a jazz muso, so this fits perfectly. Dead proud of you little bro, dead proud.
Thank you, dVerse for the timely inspiration. Enjoy many, many more jazz-inspired poems here.
Because I need to write these days in the same way that I need to breathe, because today has been different and because I like rules, but not too many, here’s my first (and not my last) entry into the dVerse Open Link. In honour of everyone who has lived a life.
*****
The Old Life
Today, we reminisced about old times: Remember when and I’d forgotten how and Can you really believe?
Today, we laughed about how they looked down on us and sneered at our clothes and told us to behave.
And yet as we shared our memories of a hotel with ideas above its station, I held a picture in my mind’s eye of a carefree girl with curly brown hair. Giggling, wearing a shapeless shirt and those jeans with the broken zip.
And I wonder where she went. And I wonder. And I wonder.
The writer’s brain is full of twists and turns, cul de sacs and U-turns. There might be hills and valleys, cliff (hangers), detours, forks in the road and missing signposts. Frustration, emptiness, despair and angst are part and parcel of the journey we take.
Would we trade in the tears and tantrums for a less challenging way of life?
No.
Well, I wouldn’t, anyway.
Because the high, when it all comes together, is indescribable.
