Poetry – Page 16 – Dan Verkys

January 2, 2025November 2, 2025

The Persistence of Time

Why does part of me always seek the harshest of feelings,
Why am I not content when I’m at rest, the peace never visits for long,
It is though my mind actively seeks out negative pathways,
Rather than remain quiet, stay at rest, be calm and content,
Instead, a pursuit haunts my sleep, and affects my waking day,
I don’t like it, I don’t want it, but it’s there,
I seek comfort in the hunt for objects that bring me pleasure,
An obscure part of my mind knows I’ll soon be unable to attain them,
So, I collect, I stockpile, I obsess, I spend, I hunt further,
Everything is recorded, everything is placed in correct order, all but me,
I foresee darkness on my horizon, and I fear the grey days that it will place me in,
I’m unsure I have the strength left to again walk that long hard road back to the light,
I don’t want that feeling, but it is inevitable.
I resent the persistence of time, and the silent murders that it commits,
Time is never held accountable, it has no day in court to answer for its crimes,
Lifespan, not death itself, that is the real ticking time-bomb of the mind,
There is no going back, just a subtle pushing forward from unseen hands,
Dark days are coming, I don’t want them, but they are inevitable.

December 31, 2024November 2, 2025

The Rivers and Stars

Two rivers born of a sister star,
Are parted by green mountains far,
At great distances, they remain aware,
Timeless is the love, that they both share.

The rivers will still flow, after both stars fall,
An endless journey through time they’ll crawl,
Finding peace in their waters ebb and flow.
For time means nothing to the bond they know.

Although the rivers meet and part too soon,
They are connected by the very same moon,
Up in night skies, where sister stars shone,
They are two rivers divided, but they flow as one.

They will meet again, when their journeys are done,
Leaving behind creeks and streams, that forever will run,
Into the ocean’s great mouth, where all good rivers flow,
Together finding peace, beneath the moon’s nightly glow.

- For my cousin Kristy

Two hearts bound by a family tie, 
Each one a cousin, that lands divide,
Tho farewelled tears fall in silent times,
Our eyes remain young, as old age chimes.

December 31, 2024November 2, 2025

Sonic Revelations

I’m enjoying the quiet days as this year comes to an end,
Filling my days with music, and cataloguing my albums,
There’s a simple comfort to be had, in this time alone I spend,
I’m revisiting sonic memories from simpler times,
Passers by look bemused, what’s a 50-year-old supposed to listen to?
Thrash metal, nu metal, death metal, doom metal, black metal, there’s no crime,
Speed masters and slow doom crunchers can fill my ears with their call,
Dark Throne, Behemoth, Black Sabbath, Anthrax, Slayer, oh here’s Kill ‘Em All,
Early Metallica, followed by Megadeth and Slipknot, all rumble from out my front door,
Music is a sedative, an escape, a muse, but mine is not everyone’s cup of tea,
Rather than life stress, right now it’s big riffs, power chords, bass and drums for me.

December 25, 2024November 2, 2025

Season’s Greetings

We’ve spent the last few weeks now, busily preparing,
So much to do, before reaching this feast we’re sharing,
We’ve renovated, tidied, chopped, sliced, and ran to and fro,
But we have all the work done now, so it’s on with the show,
It’s early, just the cockatoos outside share this bright morning,
Screeching at the sun, it’s the afternoon heat they are forewarning,
An Australian Christmas is hot, some years it can be quite obscene,
Yet a fat bearded man in a red winter coat, can always be seen,
Kids still sing of sleigh bells, some families eat a hot roasted meal,
But thankfully culture is changing, and we’re finding our own deal,
For some, there’s backyard cricket, barbecues, salads, and cold beers to plunder,
Because there is no freezing Christmas, when you are living down under,
Our family will arrive later this morning, and some final cooking will be done,
Before we sit and eat, chat, and then listen to the air conditioner’s hum,
No fat bearded men in red winter coats are on display here,
But there will be plenty of food, creamy desserts, and some lively cheer.
Although our decorations are black, the lights will still be shining bright,
When, with full bellies, we surrender another Christmas to the night.

December 21, 2024November 2, 2025

Christmas 2024

Christmas is near now, but there’s no time to toast,

My children are adults now, and this year I am the host,

A year will come soon, when I’ll come along for the ride,

When this life grows bigger, than what I can provide,

Then I’ll be the visitor, and Dad combined,

Two weird aspects of my life, once a year entwined,

This year, if there are full bellies and smiling faces, I’ve won,

For the best gift of all, is this moment of togetherness and fun.

I wish a merry time to all, no matter what your personal beliefs, religions or lifestyles are.  I'm not a religious person, but I do appreciate that some of you are, enjoy the end of 2024 with your loved ones.  I'll see you all again next year.  Love from my family to yours. xo

December 19, 2024December 19, 2024

Other Me’s

Many past lives I’ve lived within this one,

Other Me’s living with different people,

Calling other houses my home,

Other Me’s with different pets, and pastimes,

And another with a young family, or a teen family,

I now find myself here, at the sum of all those Me’s,

Is this current life my final version,

Will this be the last Me anyone will see,

Or am I at the precipice of the next Me arriving,

Who knows, I live day by day now, and I rarely plan,

Because in the blink of an eye, I could be another man.

He could be kinder and wiser, or cruel and mean hearted,

Only one thing is certain,

I’ll never again become the Me where I started.

December 15, 2024November 2, 2025

Me a River – By C.E Verkys

To be a river in the next life would be,
Busy, refreshing, timeless and free,
The water rushing, swirling, passing all by,
While on my banks, beautiful trees sway,
Colourful birds screeching their calls,
Fly up and far away.
My banks cut through bright green fields,
I can see busy machinery and people cutting wheat,
While nearby sheep and cattle meander down to drink and wet their feet,
I’d be sorry to leave behind the quiet countryside,
Further along my banks I’d find a hectic busy loud city,
Finally, here I am, the end of the river mouth to pour into the sea,
Timeless this river, never an end,
Another new life for me.

This poem was written by my late mother, Christine Elaine Verkys, while she fruitlessly battled a terminal disease to stay with us. She was the very lifeforce of our family, and after she passed, sadly so did everything else. Personally, there have been few happy days since. Me a River features on her memorial stone, which stays with me to this day.

Here's to you, and another year without you.

December 14, 2024November 2, 2025

Dead City of Dreams

A dreamer’s eyes open, suddenly and wide, accompanied by a gasp for air,
It feels as though the sleeper has been brought to life for the first time,
The confusion passes, and they acclimatise to this new red sunlit world,
Standing high on a dune, the dreamer looks down on a black city lit by red lights,
This world of exploration is dusty and dim, as the dreamer enters the city limits,
It seems lifeless, countless tall glossy black metallic buildings stretch upwards,
Every dark doorway is scarlet lit, there is no sound here other than the wind,
No birds sing, no sounds of human commotion, just an empty silent expanse,
The dreamer stands in the middle of a sand-covered road, paved with dark stone,
The wind whips sand into the sleeper’s eyes, as the sound of a low deep hum rumbles,
From the bowels of the earth, the dreamer feels the vibration through the road,
And as the sun begins to fall, the darkness brings sinister tidings,
From the black alcoves along the street, countless glowing red eyes appear,
The glowing eyes follow the dreamer while they cautiously walk among the black towers,
Again, the deep horn rumbles with a hum, and the sound of 1000 whispering voices begins,
The whispers are almost deafening, it feels as though they are inside the dreamer’s head,
With ears covered, the run begins, a left turn here, a right turn there, and into a side street,
Black metal streetlights line the roadway, all glowing with a vivid red glow,
In the dusty darkness at the end of the street, crooked black creatures with red eyes spill out,
They cut off any escape, they rapidly approach, driving the dreamer back towards the dunes,
The pavement soon becomes deep sand and a steep incline, where feet sink and slip,
The creatures are still in pursuit, the whispering intensifies as the dreamer struggles to move,
Coal black arms burst from the sand clutching the dreamer’s clothing and limbs,
Many unnaturally long arms clasp and pull the dreamer face down onto the dune side,
The sand below the dune begins to give way revealing an enormous gaping mouth,
Tentacle-like arms begin to drag the dreamer into the mouth from where they originate,
In an instant the dreamer is devoured, the mighty jaws snap shut before sinking into the sand,
Silence falls, the city empties, the red sun rises, and on the top of the dune,
A new pair of eyes open, suddenly and wide, accompanied by a new dreamer’s gasp for air