Anita-Clare Field, you have asked me a question more than once. I have never told you before, but here’s the reason why…

A Message From The Heart
You’ve asked me more than once, I think,

Why I’m the way I am,

I feel I need to write it down for you,

Or send a telegram.

Ever since I can remember, I’ve been taught

That the buck firmly stops with me;

That when Life begins to fall apart,

I shoulder full responsibility.

So when you ask repeatedly,

Why I rarely use that simple word of ‘please ‘

It’s because, till now, I’ve done my bit,

Even though its brought me to my knees.

And now I’ve found in you someone, 

Who says, “I’ll handle this,

And so I hand my role to you,

Because I trust YOU to make the fix.

And so, my darling, I declare;

Because of all you say and do,

That from the moment that I met you,

I entrusted our lives to YOU.

The maples sheltering shade.

© Caro Ness 2017

© Photo: John Duffy

 
https://plus.google.com/photos/photo/101638056787085783036/6422192429355874866?iem=4&gpawv=1&hl=en-GB

In the early hours of the morning of Friday 12 May, I nearly lost my life. If it had not been for the determination of my wife, Anita-Clare Field, to get an ambulance out to me in time, the brilliance of the 3 paramedics who kept me alive until I reached hospital, and the extraordinary, dedication of the team in A&E at the Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital, I would not be alive today. An emergency ambulance was called originally at 10.30 at night, by 2 nurses, it finally arrived at 4.30 in the morning. I was within hours of complete organ failure. So it is with profound thanks to them, that I write this poem.

Heaven For A Car
This is the Auto Graveyard,
Where cars all come to die,
Their torn and tattered metal flesh,
Is enough to make you cry.
A victim of an accident,
In which the car got bashed,
Where once the car was streamlined,
Now it just resembles trash.
Life continues round about,
It is a leafy, sylvan glade,
The irony of ‘death’ beneath
The maples sheltering shade.
© Caro Ness 2017

https://plus.google.com/photos/photo/101638056787085783036/6419688215122508130?iem=4&gpawv=1&hl=en-GB

Standing on the edge of darkness

Waiting on the dawning light,

There’s a certain inky blackness,

At the heart of every night.

Deafening silence till morning comes,

Denser somehow, due to traffic’s hums…

Thicker than blood, the evening cloaks,

With the desolation that gloom envokes.

© Caro Ness 2017



My poem for this #PoetsPrompt set by +Martha Magenta is called
Country Bound
The scents of barley and meadow sweet ,

Of lavender, of earth,

Signal Summer’s arrival, full, replete,

After Spring’s rebirth.

Living in the city

Tends to fog my brain,

I feel the country calling me,

To live in it again.

Beset by urban jungle,

I repress a primal scream,

But I’ll escape and then, ere long, 

We’ll meet again in an Arcadian dream.

© Caro Ness 2017

https://plus.google.com/photos/photo/115354121419685309751/6413407457600996690?iem=4&gpawv=1&hl=en-GB

I love this woman far, far more than I could ever say,

When I’m in her vicinity, she takes my breath away.

When I am in her presence, my heart expands within my chest,

I feel so very fortunate, that I am heaven blessed.

I need to to feel her tender touch, the joy of skin on skin, 

And when I hold her close to me, well, where do I begin? 

I love to hear her talking, she has a gorgeous voice,

Just the cadence, lilt or timbre makes my heart rejoice.

I love to hear her singing, she sings in pperfect pitch,

So every song’s a symphony, it’s neither crass nor kitsch.

But the thing that’s truly wonderful’s the beauty of her eyes,

They’re luminous, mysterious, they take you by surprise.

And the huge capacity of her very generous heart,

Her kindness and compassion really set this girl apart. 

This is my darling heart, Anita, this woman is the one;  

Because, you see, she is for me, my stars, my moon, my sun.

© Caro Ness 2017

When everything in life has changed,

When my world is rearranged,

When all I know is sore awry, 

I have to find somewhere to fly.

I always seek a happy place,

Where my pulse will no longer race,

Yes, I find a point of calm,

Where my spIrits fInd some balm,

And this is where I go.
A spot engendering rest and peace, 

A sense of poise and sweet release, 

I memorise each line and curve,

Which I believe my spirits serve,

So I can return when things go wrong,

And I need strength and help along,

It may seem smalł, to me it’s huge,

Because my soul requires refuge,

So my secret now you know.

© Caro Ness 2017

Mal ward © Photo by +Mai​

https://plus.google.com/photos/photo/106477600352409286839/6410657701090737762?iem=4&gpawv=1&hl=en-GB

Morning, 

A thin line of sun on the horizon, 

Gołd, strewn with the threads of dawn.

A shining ribbon in an ocean of blue,

Promise of warmer times to come.

Breath, condensing,

In unforgiving air,

Lungs burning. 

Cold-hot.

Spring, heralding her arrival.

© Caro Ness 2017

It’s easy to say you love me,
But can you truly show it?

So that it is no longer a mystery,

So that I really, truly know it. 
It’s easy to say you love me,

Words are easy to let slip,

Actions are not so easy,

Unless you’re shooting from the hip.
It’s easy to say you love me,

If your feelings do run deep,

If they fail to the tiniest degree,

Then your words are cheap.
It’s easy to say you love me,

Because you see, you do!

It’s as obvious as A, B, C,

Your words are lovely and they’re true! 

© Caro Ness 2017

When I am adventurous 

And I feel inclined,

I wander down to the sea,

And along the shoreline,

Searching for items that interest me.

Colourful pebbles, broken glass,

Bleached by the sun,

Smooth from the waves’ caress,

And shells, delicate, exotic,

Fragile.

I wrap them in sack cloth,

To protect them.

Today i have found

And brought home,

Amongst others,

A starfish,

It is my gift to you.  

© Caro Ness 2017

© Image James Polamz King

  Time has wrought change at Obudu.

The road still winds down,

Through lush vegetation,

But where, once, 

There used to be a rutted farm track,

Today there’s a tarmac road.

And someone has built

An imposing stone portico

With the skull of one of its herd,

Long passed, hung on two wooden poles,

And a man now sits in the gatehouse,

Takes your name as you come in,

And rings ahead to announce your arrival.

What has not changed though,

 Is how my heart lifts,

As I see those mountains,

Blue, in the distance,

And I know I’m coming home…

© Caro Ness 2017

© image James Polamz King

Obudu Cattle Ranch, Nigeria https://caronessauthor.wordpress.com/2017/04/15/obudu-cattle-ranch-nigeria/ via @caronessauthor