yes you caused this – a THANK YOU Post

December 9th 2013 – I posted my last THANK YOU!

How remiss of me for leaving it so long between ‘THANKS’- shame and tut tut (so not my way – or the Aussie way).

December I had 597 followers, 597 people whom I had never met. Never laid eyes on, never met personally (apart from two people) or bought a coup of coffee for, or shared a wine.

Today as of 21st February, 2014 I have 691 followers.

I don’t know you, I don’t know much about your lives or who you are, or what makes you special.

What I do know is that I am grateful, thankful that you have wanted to follow my rantings, raving, poetry, life stories. The ups and downs and in-betweens of who I am and what I write.

So I say THANK YOU to each and everyone of you, I may be weird in doing thank you posts, but that’s who I am and I am very appreciative that you enjoy what I write.

Most of you sit quietly in the background and that’s ok, I’m okay with that, you do what you have to do, as I do what I have to do.

If you wish to stick around I smile, if you get bored and go to greener pastures, I’ll understand.

So it’s just a thank you, pure and simple from my little pink thing that beats.

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Chat Time Personal ‘stuff’ – pour a drink – its been a while

Dear  Fans Followers,

My Muse is still drinking I think and poetry is a struggle (at 4:18 pm Thursday afternoon) but I didn’t begin this blog to even write poetry so YAY to me for attempting…yes?

This afternoon, as Melbourne Australia (Horsetralia) swelters under a blazing hot sun and hot northerly winds, the temperature is 44C – that’s erm roughly 111.2 Farenheit. That is hot, I am hot (well I was when I was younger – that’s a joke everyone) so I sit here under a ceiling fan with the Evaporative cooler going flat-out as she/he is struggling somewhat.

Since I haven’t had a chat for a while, and Poetry Muse is off in some corner possibly sporting a massive hangover, my chat Muse is still able to talk…stop groaning it won’t be that bad.

Last weekend I had a visitor, http://summerstommy.com Michael lives in NSW – that’s heading up North from where I live and he was down visiting some of his children. He is the 2nd blogger I have met through WP and being a fellow Aussie – well put it this way – I greeted him at the door with a hug and a few kindly expletives 🙂 as is ‘our way’.

He arrived Sat and he sat in the kitchen whilst I fiddled about making potato salad for our BBQ dinner that night. He chatted to Mr. S and it was all very lovely and relaxed. Later we had the BBQ and I cooked a peppered butterfly lamb (Lyn will know of this) 🙂

Now Michael being a retired Drama and English teacher has assisted me along the way with the writing of my Eulogies and he does a damn fine job let me tell you. I use the word ‘that’ too many times, he corrects, I word a paragraph weird..he corrects. So as I had the Service yesterday – it was a perfect opportunity for him to sit with me and go through what I had written. “He done good” 🙂 (he will hate that) I can write, but sometimes my use of the English language is a little all over the shop and he points me in the right direction.

He stayed over Saturday night and Sunday morning the 3 of us went out for breakfast – ah to be sure it was grand. Meeting a fellow blogger is strange, you realise – they aren’t some imaginary/virtual being that you have communicated with, but a real live person (odd but true).

He left Sunday afternoon and I have to say it was a great pleasure to not only meet him, but chat/banter/whine/discuss etc. I even put the poor bugga through an ordeal he probably didn’t anticipate and took him to meet my Penguins – so he could see that they too (to?) (waits for the correction) were ‘real’.

So if you don’t read him or follow him – go over and take a peek – he writes mainly poetry and he’s a lovely, caring human being.

Yesterday I had my first Burial – all my other Services have been Cremations.
It was 41C yesterday, the Chapel Cooling system was struggling, as was I and I stuffed up and where did I stuff up…reading the Lord’s Prayer for the family. Of all the things to go wrong when I should know this off by heart – and do… but the family were also saying it out loud in front of me..and well…I lost my place. I apologised and continued.

After the Service we went to the burial site for her internment. A family with 6 children, 19 grandchildren and 29 great grand children. They let free their balloons, scattered carnations and roses onto the Coffin and everyone was emotional and very flustered with the heat.

I was invited back for refreshments by the family, they were simply lovely, getting me food and drink and asking me to sit with them. Hopefully the ‘muck-up’ will be forgotten, I did apologise again to them, they said not to worry…

Homefront: My Penguins – Pop seems to be struggling to comprehend what I say to him of late, when he stands now, his whole body shakes and he must sit down within a couple of minutes. Mum is on her medication for her memory loss due to her strokes and now and then gets very angry for no real reason. I am at the point of talking to her like a child, but not in a demeaning way, for I know this is not her.

I won’t go on with other members of the family – let me just say, things are in place to get us back on track…hopefully.

So that’s it – you can wake up now – sorry if I bored the pants off you, as I said it’s been a while since I chatted.

Yours Sincerely,

Rambles

Is it you or an illusion (Prose)

My_lost_love_by_schabi

does my mind play tricks on me
a magician who waves the wand
across the top hat for a rabbit to appear
have you returned to fill the lacuna in my life
the missing piece ~ the closure
You, who I relied upon, who sated my desires
the figure beneath the ghostly sheet that walks
the passage-ways of my dreams

is my love for you not finished
I see you walk along concrete streets
out of doorways ~ I hear the bell
that peals your existence
my mind sees you, two steps in front of me
back turned distancing yourself
I call, but have no answer
is this your sign to move on, relinquish
what I feel

to someone that I loved
yet you are creeping back,  inch by inch
to present day, disrupting the life that I
had to make, a decision not of mine
to forget what was ours, I can’t extinguish
the love we had, unrealistically so to ask
and my question is ~ should you not let me be
so that I move on

I shall answer ~ a finger placed upon your
lips, I cannot, not for now in this moment
I feel you next to me, a hand held
a whispering kiss
the passions of the night, the laughter
in the days, the wine against the sunsets
you are not real ~ you have disappeared
and I walk the concrete streets alone
holding you in my heart
cradling you in my arms

©jmtacken Sept 2013

Photo Credit schiraki.deviantart.com

Please Sir a little more Sir (Prose)

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throw me a coin ma lord
just to help me feed ma young

I won’t throw to the likes of you
to me you are but scum

I have 2 children Sir at hom’
who are screamin’ to be fed
I ask for your indulgence
a coin is all I beg

be off with you, I’ll show no mercy
street corners where you lay
hand outstretched to anyone
find I job I say

I lay on these street corners Sir
for I was kicked out of me hom’
me husbund’ threw his hand to me
I was never safe alone

don’t be in court an judge me
for you do not know my life
I’m a lovin muther and
I was a devoted wife

but circumstance be as they may
have seen me take this road
so you can not think ill of me
for who are you to know

the life I’ve led and what I’ve seen
with a man that once did love me
now  coms’ home drunk every night

and treats all of us so cruely

‘ere then woman take this, seek shelter
where you can, feed your young
run far and wide, get away from
this cruel man

thank you Sir, most graciously
I debt I can’t repay
but you’ll be in my prayers tonight
and every other day

©jmtacken Sep 2013

Just to round off the day – night all.

Change a child’s world (Prose from 4 words)

Shaun  from prayingforoneday gave me 4 words (yes he cheated ) 🙂 these are – child – confusion – unaware and woman – this is what I made of them.  If any of you know Shaun’s story, you will be able to relate to what I have written. I had grabbed only ‘parts’ of his history and upbringing to write this.   You can read his story here –
Beatings, drugs and more through the eyes of a child

****************

I didn’t understand
alcohol ~ drugs
women thrown against walls
for men to force themselves upon

I was unaware of crime
weapons that were carried
a favour for a favour
in the world of underground

I was a child and bore the cross of confusion

this was my life ~ unfolding
could I be rescued, before I grew too hard
a life of which I saw no change
only violence and hate

innocence was lost between those days

as I watched my father’s life
witness to the bloodshed
when I had no say till ‘of age’ I
found someone, I finally had a place

my saviour was a woman
a young girl as she was then
whose kindness and comfort
turned my shattered world around

teaching me to love, to
leave the past behind and
I have grown a stronger man
for her being by my side

you may all say ~ a fairy-tale
but for years, she’s stood by me
and I am in a better place
the best that I could be

©jmtacken Sept 2013

I have 2 more pieces to write for my 3 word challenge (or 4) if anyone would like to add, please feel free. I thank you all for the inspiration.

My wheels go clunk…clunk

there is no running
of bare feet touching grass
no climbing steps on ladders
her legs are metal circular wheels

food is cut minutely
so it just fits in her mouth
her hands are not controlled
she cannot hold a spoon or knife

her voice is often slurred
as she tries to conquer words
wants others to understand
the strain upon her face, most evident

she is a butterfly,
within her heart within her mind,
that soars into the skies, some
will simply fly higher

and some, will not take flight
but there is beauty
in each and every one of them
each one’s a butterfly

Poetics:  Written for Fred Rutherford’s  prompt  on Beauty is everywhere in anything…

For the wonderful DVerse.

Sometimes what starts as an ordinary day… can change

Isn’t it marvellous, when a perfectly ordinary day turns out to be something very special?

My friend  Miriam E. or (Miri) as I call her and myself have decided to create a new site. A collaboration of her brilliant artistic mind from across the seas in Germany and myself, a middle aged mum from Melbourne Australia.

We have been working together on several ‘poetry projects’ in the past and thought it would be a great time to take it one step further.
So, I humbly present our joint blog

Words…From Here To There.

Care to join us for the ride?

Warrnambool Pub – Anzac Day 25.4.2013

Three old diggers were they heroes or not
I cannot say
Anzac Day in Australia twenty fifth of April just passed
Did they fight in the trenches defending our country or perhaps were they flag bearers for their Unit
Looking closer
They wore medals on smartly pressed suit jackets, hair washed and neatly combed
Celebrated with a Dawn Service
Heads bowed in prayer laid flowered wreaths against stone monuments
Thought of the ones they left behind who did not return home as they did
Thought of those lives they knew and were lost so young

I stood in the bar on my recent vacation and watched these three distinguished old gentlemen
As they sipped their beer
Reminiscing and possibly shed a tear of sadness for the terror that they saw
Or hopefully a laugh with a fellow comrade of a happier moment they recalled
I opened my purse
Telling the bar tender, three beers for the ‘lads’ please and he smiled
He poured three beers and said these are from the young lady and pointed to me
They looked up
One by one they came through the door from the opposite lounge and walked towards me

Thank you they politely said
Thank you
No one has done that for us before
I looked into their tired watery eyes
I looked down at the medals they proudly had pinned
I said you are most welcome
Happy Anzac Day boys and
Thank You

It’s time to say thank you

It’s Sunday afternoon ( 4:00pm to be precise) here in the Land Down Under, eyes down everyone ( no I’m not playing Bingo) look to the left, right, up, or in the middle, depending where you live.

It’s been a little while since I said Thank – You.
My fans, followers have reached an amazing 227 and over 12,000 ‘hits’ (probably many that had lost their way from the tags I placed) but nonetheless, I am bowled over by that amount. For those of you that have a gazillion, be proud of your accomplishment. For those who have just begun your blogging journey, I wish you luck and happiness at being able to share your words. You will meet some amazingly talented and lovely folk.

As much as I love to write, I think it only fair, that now and then we should thank those that follow us (my thoughts only). I could sit at home and scribble my ramblings into my journal, but would I be satisfied with that? Everyone likes a pat on the back and recognition for what they do. Having a site whereby people can follow you (obviously because they enjoy what they read or they wouldn’t otherwise), is my encouragement to continue. There are days when my brain is frozen (yes I know – doesn’t happen often) but meeting challenges and prompts on various sites, or coming up with an idea from reading another post,  or simply having an idea in my head that I need to share gives me such an internal buzz. I love it, we all do or we wouldn’t have started in this realm.

Knowing that people enjoy (hopefully) what I do,  brings a smile to my dial…. like this       🙂

‘so ..yeah thanks heaps’

To start with none
then see one
and gradually increase
stirs up many emotions
in liddle’ bitty me
Some may think I dribble
and I’m really very touched
for you to hang on in there
I thank you all so much

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