September October Collection

September and October are the most beautiful months of the year. The days are golden. Leaves flutter in the breeze. The days become shorter but the sunsets are more stunning. I hope you will enjoy my latest collection of poetry. It is a mix of tales of the sea and autumnal pictures, finishing with a nod to Halloween.

Rejuvenating sun

You are so far away

But at the same time

You seem close

You have the power

To calm stormy seas

Transform landscapes

Exude energy

Spread warmth and joy

Nurture gardens and fields

In partnership with the rain.

Walking across 

A windswept beach

I become aware

Of a presence

A rolling cloud

Shadow in the sand

Man or child

I cannot decipher

I feel I know you

Intimately

Yet your name

Eludes me

Silent, reassuring

You introduce me

To a side of myself

I did not know existed.

Green mingles with gold

Winding canal path echoes

With September songs.

Stained fingers

Sharp thorns

Slips and trips

In tangled hedgerows

Made bearable

Irrelevant even

By the taste of

Sweet blackberries

Exploding

On my tongue.

Deep dark sapphire sky

Close encounter with a storm

Delicious danger.

Swishing happily

Through rivers of fallen leaves

October delights.

Do I head for dry land

Keep my feet on the ground

Or do I follow my heart

Through a heavenly mirage?

Cloud conundrum.

Silky spider's web

October dewdrop catcher

Twinkles in the sun.

You are never

Out of my thoughts

Although some days

It may seem

As if I drift away

But always

Always, always

That invisible 

Piece of elastic

Tugs at my heartstrings

Brings me back to you

And instantly the time

We were apart

Evaporates like clouds

In a shallow pool

My dependable sea.

Still autumn garden

Vibrant remnants of summer

Cling to paths and pots.

Tender golden leaves

Hovering

Fluttering

Oh so gently

Shimmering

Chameleons

Enhanced by drifting

October sun

Giving one last

Performance

Before slowly

Floating

To reconnect

With the earth

From where they came.

Raindrops on petals

Reflections of unseen tears

Fragile emotions. 

With eyes like saucers

I stare through rainbow leaves

At a fleet of lily pad boats

Drifting with long shadows

Guided by hazy ripples

To a place where autumn

Never ends.

Rugged mountain peaks

Your misty snow-kissed beauty

Takes my breath away.

Sleeping fishing boats

Nestled in Bolata Bay

Under argent skies

Dreaming of night time drifting

And rolling blue bow waves.

Water drips inside the cave

Giving the illusion of rain

Bats cling to a shadowy ceiling

The dank environment

Makes them feel safe

As darkness descends

They flex their wings

Flap loudly

Swoop

Encircle

Unnerve

But this is 

No Halloween party

It is a thing

Of natural beauty.

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You can find me on both X and Instagram under @jillwebbwords. Links are provided below.

       

Autumn Haiku

Since I started writing poetry all over again a few years ago, I toyed with the idea of publishing a book of my work on multiple occasions. After a lot of head scratching, at the end of 2024 I decided to abandon the idea of doing anything on a larger scale, but instead opted to have a book of my haiku printed to give to close family members only.   

To mark the start of each season throughout this year I have posted the corresponding poems and photographs taken from the book, here on my blog. This is the final post in the series. 

Autumn is the most beautiful time of year. Stunning sunsets, misty mornings, falling leaves and shades of gold and crimson. I hope the poems reflect my love of the season.

Bowl of windfall plums

Luscious russet pink and gold

Colours of autumn.

Drowsy bee clings to

Fading remnants of summer

September is here.

Shiny tomatoes

Ripening in the sunshine

Waiting to salsa.

At one with nature

Savouring quiet moments

Soul realignment.

Tentacle branches

Delightfully entangled

Forest tapestry.

Do not shake the tree

When the apples are ready

They will come to you.

Fewer things enchant

More than raindrops suspended

In a spider's web.

As one story ends

Another slowly unfolds

Dahlia intrigue.

I feel so alive

When I am in the presence

Of wild crashing waves.

Leaves flirt with the lake

Golden fluttering embrace

Autumn love story.

A single boat sails

On transient amber waves

October sunset.

Mesmerising flames

Showers of exploding stars

Magic in their eyes.

Distant battle cries

Broken hearts etched in the sky

Peace their fragile gift.

November lingers

As a solitary leaf

Tumbles to the ground.

Thank you for taking the time to read. You can find me on both X and Instagram under @jillwebbwords. Links are provided below.

       

August Collection

August... The month when leaves and flowers start to look tired. Here in the UK there's a chill in the air some mornings and the days become noticeably shorter. As summer fades into autumn it is the perfect time to celebrate those hazy days.  

For the first time in way too long I am proud to collaborate with my dear friend and fellow poet Joe Praks. You can read four of his poems a little further on down the page. 

I hope you will enjoy our collection of August poetry.

A young boy kicks a ball

Along a cracked street

Sees a flower peeping

Through shards of glass

Its beauty shining

From deep within

Carefully he picks it

To give to his mother

Because all she does is cry

Since his daddy went away

He ran home
Through the dust

To the sound of shells

Heralding a new day

Rushed into

His mother's arms

With trust in his eyes

She took the daisy from him

Gave a watery smile

Twirled its 

Feather-like petals

Holding him close she said

"No good ever comes out of war

It's a malignant stain

On this world of ours

But we must be like this flower

Resilient true and full of hope

That one day the destruction ends."

Rainbow skies

Mirrored

In deep water

Reminded him

Of what they had

Chameleon emotions

Passionate red

Zany orange

Sunshine yellow

Natural green

Blue the colour

His world turned

The day she said

"It's time

For me to leave"

Eyes of indigo violet

That still haunted him

In his broken dreams.

Marigold pixie

Splashing through rain soaked petals

Making sweet mischief.

Fluttering flowers

Soft and fragrant to the touch

Geranium love.

(Photo courtesy of Tony)

Floating yet static

Pale origami whisper

Unfurling lily.

From a grassy bank

I watch distant ships sail by

Observe the rugged landscape

Manicured only by time and tide

There is not another soul in view

Nothing left open to misinterpretation

Sleepy sunset river

You have a charm of your own.

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The next four poems/photos are by Joe.

Sometimes

But any time I close my eyes

I can hear music

I can SEE and FEEL music

She comes to me with silence

Or with pouring rain

She vibrates with the broken

Beat of my heart

I can feel her scent when

Thunder roars

As the wind blows

I can see her light

When darkness is all around.

The night is approaching

As the light is leaving this world

Everything is getting still

Or it seems so

I never know what to do or think

When the sky is playing

Her scene of the day

Clouds forming

In shapes and colours

To alter my fantasy

I'm trying not to wink

Not to lose a thing.

Have you ever wished

To have un-met someone

You'd loved so much

You couldn't move, nor move on

Or carry on

To un-kiss this person's lips

To un-long for that person's touch

To un-hear all the nice words

You were repeating to yourself

Before you went into a dream

It's a useless deed, my friend

It can't be done

It won't ever be done

Nothing can be undone

The only way to get out of life

Is to continue to love and to live

As only the sky sets the colours

Into white, black, or bluest blue

No matter what

I will always love

YOU.

Piano getting dusty

We thought you

Just needed a wee break

As anybody else

We didn't see it coming

Until there was nothing to hide

Anymore, anyway we're still

Waiting for you

With our mood of blue

Our guitars untuned correctly

For our random Aida

Talking blues

Boy do we miss you.

If you would like to read more of Joe’s work he can be found on X and Instagram.

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Painted canal boat

Life slides into slow motion

When you sail away.

He kept vigil by her bedside

Another day spent navigating

Tangled forests of emotion

Running tired fingers

Over her closed eyelids

Whispering her name

Yearning for a flicker

Yearning for the mundane.

Summer colours fade

Misty August morning haze

The cusp of autumn.

A garden sprinkled 

With pixie dust

Where the air is heavy

With the scent of lavender

Is the most magical

Place on earth.

Energised by rain

The glorious dahlia

Twirls and pirouettes.

I saw an extrovert butterfly

Full of sass and attitude

Boldly spreading painted wings

Against a pebbledash wall

I asked why she had not settled

On a rose or a leafy tree

She said

"Because I needed a break

From all the tweetin' and buzzin'

Of those pesky birds and bees."

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Thank you for taking the time to read. You can find me on both X and Instagram under @jillwebbwords. Links are provided below.