“Bonfire of Broken Hearts by Stewart Stafford A shivering man craving warmth, Mustn't let the fire consume him, Despite temptation heat flares, In arousal-seared microseconds. Lured in with passion's promise, A stray spark or lick of flame is all Love ignites into walking fireball— Devotion's immolation sacrifice. On a cracked cardiac bonfire, Toughened muscles take time to burn, An atrophied, coarse chest slump, Once burned it is charcoal brittle. In the hall of mirrors' reflection, ICU, but do you see any of me? No salve - a scorched psyche set free. © 2026, Stewart Stafford. All rights reserved.” LovePoetryHeartbreakPsychologicalSurrealismLove And LossContemporary PoetryDark PoetryAnti ValentineStewart Stafford Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Tentacled Maws by Stewart Stafford Unhook the mind, Put honesty in dispute, From chosen blood, Comes officious brute. Tentacled things taking, Malicious, maladroit maws, In a hubris blizzard blind, Behind lupine power doors. Irradiated golden pockets, Ragged wretches starving, Dynasties sprouting weeds, Names on plaques for carving. © 2025, Stewart Stafford. All rights reserved.” PoetryPovertyGreedExistentialismDystopianSurrealismSocial CommentaryAllegoryPolitical SatireCosmic Horror Author:Stewart Stafford
“Yuletide Unburdening by Stewart Stafford Fading embers of the final Christmas test, No more the frantic angst of dawn, Now it is poised last-minute checks, And then the flushing of responsibility. A fortnight of relaxation and merriment, Awaits the temporarily-exonerated inmate, Though it means entering the bruising storm, Bartered freedom a passenger and guide home. Cross the draughty, great hall, and finish line, Whispered submission of completed exam papers, And the old year's prescribed work is done, Then outside, leaving others to their stress.” SchoolPoetryCollegePoemTestsFinalsChristmasExaminationHoliday SeasonExams Author:Stewart Stafford
“A Malignant State by Stewart Stafford When oozing eyes of paranoia, And the septic ears of hearsay, Vomit hysteria up as atrocity, The mad dog jackal has its day. A demented warden's open prison, Each dwelling house, a divided cell, Community focus now second best, Our loved ones, cats in the wishing well. For your "security," a police state, gifted, Humiliation's fires rage by a dry water spout, A lawfare circus for their spoiler alerts, Truth's spectral vessel a flood of doubt. © 2025, Stewart Stafford. All rights reserved.” TruthPoetryFearLiesPropagandaControlOrwellianBig BrotherSurveillance StatePolitical Poetry Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Philosopher’s Weight by Stewart Stafford Philosopher in my peripheral vision, Pouring watery wisdom rapidly Into my ear, then stepping back, Smiling, he bid me go on my way. What he said made my way clearer, But added to the burden on my back, While lightening his own load, In guiding a stranger through the dark. What advice did the wise one give me? "Follow one step with another and live, My son, use any difficulty you find As a beacon on your journey to salvation." © 2026, Stewart Stafford. All rights reserved.” InspirationalWisdomPoetrySpiritualityPhilosophicalSelf DiscoveryExistentialismMetaphysicalAllegoryShort Read Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Dopamine Paradigm by Stewart Stafford Never so connected, Yet, never further apart, A crowded room's isolation, An aspic suitors' false start. Fear and hatred everywhere, When toxic ideologies stink, Lab rats of our own making, Reward hits go over the brink. Throwing away tomorrow, For a dopamine buzz today, Home fort, don't multiply, A eunuch future staggers away. © 2025, Stewart Stafford. All rights reserved.” PoetryDatingAddictionIsolationModern LifeSocial CommentaryProcreationContemporary PoetryThe Human RaceThe Digital Age Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Lingerer by Stewart Stafford Another lonely start, O shadow companion, My twin bereft of heart, On grief’s stormy galleon. Each step disbelief, Strangers pass in proximity, In motion an artist’s relief, Abstract as infinity. The quickening pulse of streets, Tears on cheeks reflective, This scarred heart missing beats, Damaged and defective. Home now just where memory sits, Perspective greatly shifted, This shapeless form no longer fits, The body it was gifted. And if, my love, you see me now, I beg you, look away, Love’s blush departed with a bow, Then withered and decayed. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryLossGriefLonelinessPoemGrief And LossDeath Of A Loved OneBereavementLoss Of LoveGrieving Process Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Night Watchman by Stewart Stafford Does the night watchman watch the night or does the night watch him? Is there anything in the darkness or is his eyesight growing dim? Does a beast growl in the shadows or is his stomach requesting food? Is his pay adequate compensation or is his boss just being rude? As he prays for the sunrise, does anyone hear his prayers? When he clocks out for breakfast, is anyone standing there? Does he creep home to his bed to count the hours down? Until he sits staring at the darkness once more with a quizzical and resigned frown? © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryLonelinessPoemNight ShiftPhobiasFear Of The DarkNight WatchWatchmanNight ShiftsIn The Dark Of The Night Author:Stewart Stafford
“Maelstrom Rock by Stewart Stafford O, obsidian jagged island, This playground of the gods, Distant white novice waves, In warhorse slam into rock. Be this witchcraft or wit's raft? Conducting the vast elements, With lava-hot passion mustered, Spinning whirlpool shipwreck tales. A walker between the winds comes, Both Nature and shaman within it, Of coral and shell and weed growth, Compassion at flaying whip's end. Bid goodbye to the demi-paradise! On the gloomy prow, watch it flee, An aria's dreams of magic ebbing, Freed thralls clasp earthly chains. © Stewart Stafford, 2024. All rights reserved.” PoetryFantasyMagicSeaAdventureMythologyWeatherIslandObsidianThe Tempest Author:Stewart Stafford
“O My Stars by Stewart Stafford Sweet stars of my youth I have aged, but you have not As a child, you were the wondrous dreams I aspired to In later life, you were still so bitterly distant Yet always mesmeric in your beauty With awe and gratitude for your companionship If there is another side, you shall be the celestial shore I walk upon With earthly depths beneath Where others see and dream and reach up for you. © Stewart Stafford, 2020. All rights reserved.” PoetryStarsSpacePoemAstronomyAspirationPoemsReaching For The StarsReach For The StarsTimeless Beauty Author:Stewart Stafford
“Poetry is the articulation of emotion through language.” PoetryPoetPoemPoetry QuotesPoemsPoeticPoetsPoetry QuotePoetic QuotesPoetry Quotes Art Author:Stewart Stafford
“A Ravaging Sentinel's Vow by Stewart Stafford State your love for me now — Agreed, a cracked heart pledge, Defying your many flaws, martyring me to betrayal's dredge. At your darkest dawn — My fealty oath holds true, when every back is turned, a redeeming ravager’s purview. A sentinel’s dust trail climbs high, hooves thunder; the sundial stops, A vow declared, enemies routed, disaster reined on teetering clifftops. © 2025, Stewart Stafford. All rights reserved.” LovePoetryBetrayalLoyaltyRedemptionHeroismGothicDark PoetryVowsEpic Poetry Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Green Rose by Stewart Stafford Through fractured eyes, I see the rose I once plucked, In another man's hands. And mistakes that cannot be unmade, Sins that must go unforgiven, A resigned reluctance to surrender all hope. Those fingers enwrapping, The slender stem, That only holds spiky thorns for me now. I watch and reminisce, So close and familiar, Yet so alien and barren. I turn and walk away, Leaving the green rose, In place on the grave of what once was. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemEnvyJealousyPoemsLost LoveBreaking UpPoems On LoveGreen Eyed MonsterPast Relationships Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Enemy Within by Stewart Stafford There is more to a smile than the baring of teeth, His grin had all the warmth of daggers unsheathed, The lips did part but the eyes remained staring, The skin was pocked and trust was badly faring. The lips quivered at every imagined slight, The eyes glittered like a serpent's at twilight, Arms crossed in constant defence, The foot tapping, waiting to take offence. Who knows or cares of his jealousy's genesis, He strove beyond measure to become my nemesis, Seeking to frustrate me at every turn, And put me prematurely in a cremation urn. The hero can fend off any attack, Except for the knife that's plunged in the back, They may not even know the weapon's in far, Until the assailant's coup de grâce. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemJealousyEnemiesRivalryNemesisMozartBackstabbersSalieriStab In The Back Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Dead Rock Star's Bar by Stewart Stafford I went for a drink in The Dead Rock Star's Bar, Phil Lynott was drinking whiskey in the jar, Jimi Hendrix was rocking the place, Elvis Presley was stuffing his face, Sid Vicious was grumpy and gruff, Freddie Mercury strutted his stuff, Marvin Gaye had plenty of soul, Lennon and Cobain compared bullet holes, Jim Morrison declared he was The Lizard King Buddy Holly sported an aeroplane wing, Such an array of talent leaves one's mouth agape, But they're all still alive on CD and tape, Wherever you live, you don't have to travel far, To have a damn good time at The Dead Rock Star's Bar. © Stewart Stafford, 1996. All rights reserved.” PoetryMusicPoemMusicianPoemsRock StarRock MusicThe BeatlesElvis PresleyFreddie Mercury Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Mortal Tempest by Stewart Stafford In the tranquil, shaded crypt, Life's storms batter no more, Historia, the isolated remnant, Of an interior remembrance. The howling gale, a mourner's cry, Icy tendrils reaching to exert, The only possible pressure, On a shell in heedless slumber. A post-mortem death wish, Phantom projection of the morbid, To vacate an urn and soar, Swirling ash in the mortal tempest. © 2021, Stewart Stafford. All rights reserved.” DeathPoetryLossGriefMourningExistentialismMortalityDark PoetryElegyDeath Poems Author:Stewart Stafford
“Reflectorama by Stewart Stafford City buildings screaming down, Memories staggering anywhere, My childhood self calls out, But I must not go back there. Conjoined twins amputated, The pathway home lies cracked, Tsunamis smashed our thin bridge, Egregious horse, blindly backed. Forced into immovable objections, Monoliths in mutual self-defeat, Torched your bed, now burn in it, As I hotfoot it down the street. © 2025, Stewart Stafford. All rights reserved.” PoetryGriefIdentityMental HealthTraumaModernismEscapismSurrealismFragmentationUrban Poetry Author:Stewart Stafford
“I Am Chameleon by Stewart Stafford I am the shadow in your peripheral vision, A rippling in the brilliantine matrix, A wind's mesmerising, gossamer lullaby, The speck of dust for a euphoric sneeze. I am the shimmering, starry shell of night, The bird that bathes in transient pools, A cloud, shaped by myriad perspectives, Flaming phoenix flower picked to re-sprout. I am the tribal cave of rest and warmth, The cleansing pool of birth and rebirth, The fire of light, heat, and nourishment, The beloved departed's shawl on cold nights. I am soup and a sandwich on a rainy day, Banquet feast of a gathering of the clans, Caviar of the commonplace, regal remnants, An after-dinner mint to soothe and satiate. I am the floating shadow clinging to the corner of your eye. © 2025, Stewart Stafford. All rights reserved.” SpiritualPoetryGriefIdentityComfortTransformationSymbolismContemporary PoetryMythicNature Imagery Author:Stewart Stafford
“Pariah Luggage by Stewart Stafford I am the last piece of luggage, On the baggage carousel, If there's a suitcase deity, It has cursed and forsaken me. I see the excited faces drop, Blank me and turn away, And around I go yet again, Condemned to ovoid limbo. The stumbling supermodel, On a mortification catwalk, Bursting at badly-taped seams, Spilling contents everywhere. On my next lap of shame, Those same faces show pity, For the uninvited leper guest, At life's most fugacious "party." © Stewart Stafford, 2022. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemShameBaggageLuggageAirportPariahTravel PoetrySuitcaseLost Luggage Author:Stewart Stafford
“A Churchyard In Summertime by Stewart Stafford O, to stand in a quiet country churchyard, The graveyard bending in summer zephyrs, Chlorophyll light beneath swaying poplars, Rook song in twilight's nocturne. Oblivious hues spread upon canvas, Beside the somnambulant swanning river, Miasmas of midges at the water's edge, In the crosshairs of a painter's thumb. Then the sun rolls away over the horizon, A veil draws across the long day's play, A churn supper collection of basket and easel, Recollections in the slumbering night. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemSummerPainterSummertimeDaydreamPortraitChurchyardsChurchyardSummer Poetry Author:Stewart Stafford
“Where Storms Nest by Stewart Stafford Time's arrow has left its quiver, And mortal men denied a sliver, Of sweet-faced solace or settled debt, Surrendering all to sweeping death. Beware the vixen with the perished pup, Of merciless slight and sacrilegious sup, Of mother's milk and witches' brew, Curdling infamy and death's-head stew. The trap is sprung, the rider unseated, A mourning procession for the defeated, A great wrong sits on the anointed throne, She is Queen Bee and you, but a drone. From a spider's web veil, she does regard, Hateful glances from black heart's shard, Envenomed nature of poisonous Man, The scorpion's strike of a foul plan. After seeking power and blood and lust, Remorse a late guest to a dagger's thrust, The vulture shrieks to the globe's outer rim, That Man's ambition is a Hell to him. © Stewart Stafford, 2022. All rights reserved.” PoetryPowerPoemAmbitionMurderRemorseRoyaltyBloodshedPower StruggleTryanny Author:Stewart Stafford
“In Search of El Dorado by Stewart Stafford A meandering mountain path awaits, Build a bonfire of remembrance, With crunching staff on gravel, Certainty slowly becomes a stranger. The funereal pace of the brand-new, Is reborn in accelerating steps, In concert with liberation's adrenaline, And a cooling breeze through the brim. Startled young fox on a crag, A hawk circles overhead, Sage standing stones keep counsel, Their shadows pointing the way forward. Sheep stare and chew in nearby wet fields, Occasionally bleating confused directions, A pillar of black smoke stretches into the sky, A beacon on the horizon. A ridge around a corner, The crêpe shop comes into view, Relief exhaled upon reaching El Dorado's gates, Golden sustenance and home via the car park. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryWalksWalkingPoemPoemsWalkWalkerTreasure HuntEl DoradoHill Walking Author:Stewart Stafford
“Neptune’s Lost Banana by Stewart Stafford O lost banana of Neptune, Do you wonder why you’ve washed ashore? Do people see a yellow fruit in the water? Or a Portuguese Man O’War? You were so near the fingertips of power, Did fortune peel away your chances too quick? Or do you see yourself in an ivory tower? Of a split-away banana republic? You could have been top banana, Now you’re potential poetic justice, For someone with bad karma to slip on, And go skidding as you go squish. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemSurrealBananasNeptuneJellyfishBananaFunny PoemPoetic JusticeBanana Republic Author:Stewart Stafford
“Life Cycles by Stewart Stafford From fair youth’s day, To dark-spotted age, The blooms of May, Usher out winter’s sullen maze. When the bars of the juvenile cage are splayed, And our stars have run their course, The debt of carefree times gets repaid, As we from this earthly plain divorce. We crawl to walk and stoop alone, As the dead remain uncured, Until Time grants us further loans, Immortality is a bloodline secured. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” AgeLife LessonsPoetryPoetPoemPoemsAgeingCircle Of LifeLife HacksLife Cycles Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Easter Vigil by Stewart Stafford Nightfall on Easter Saturday, A church in darkness, Flickering fire through stained glass, Hope so close yet out of reach. The Paschal candle is lit outside from a small garden bonfire, And, in reverent procession, brought indoors, The flaming beacon makes its entrance at the rear of the congregation, The mother candle bows, bestowing blazing brows on the humbler candles of those assembled. The welcoming brightness gently spreads among the pews, Confusing darkness now a sea of light, United in illumination, And He is there. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryChristianityPoemPoemsCatholicismRitualEasterReligious PoetryEaster SaturdayEaster Vigil Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Burning Chorus by Stewart Stafford As clawed lightning, love strikes without warning to scorch the heart, And, as it is painful to be born, love, make love, and die, So we may surmise that life itself is pain in different guises, Some unwelcome interlopers but all necessary. More than passing sensations, We are shocked into living, And in that shock, the heart plots a different course, To beat for the first time or quicken with excitement or cease. Sometimes we stray into pleasure’s realms, Diverted there unknowing, And resolve to be passengers no more, But masters of when and where the burning chorus strikes. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” LoveLifePainPoetryPoemPoemsLightningLove PoemPain And PleasureLife Is Pain Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Beshrewing of Tom o' Bedlam by Stewart Stafford Fie and a plague on thee! Nay, a pox! May legions of hellions float through thee, And may thou fall in the dung of an ox. May the thing below thine eyes, Take on the appearance of a sprout, And may the things above thy chin, Resemble a harlot's spout. May Heaven strike thee dumb, Aye, dumber than thou art now, May thy words become those of a lunatic, And thy breathing the grunting of a sow. Verily, I do not wish thee misfortune, Lest it rebounds back upon me, But, as long as it befalls thee first, I may live quite merrily. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemCurseCursesSchadenfreudeFunny PoemShakespearean InsultElizabethan PoetryShakespearean InsultsSadistic Humor Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Lighthouse by Stewart Stafford Apart and alone, From where the ships dock, Stands the white sentinel edifice on a promontory rock. Like the land's index finger, At the extent of the sea, Warning passing vessels where it's safe to be. It's one luminous eye, Swivels around its clear head, To keep lucky sailors off the seabed. It seeks no credit, And needs no thanks, Saluting proudly from above the fog banks. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemLighthouseThe SeaMaritime StoriesLighthousesBeacon Of LightShipwrecksRime Of The Ancient MarinerSea Shanty Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Walker by Stewart Stafford The walker takes a step forward, Positive but possibly fatal to them, Brave but perhaps foolishly ambitious to onlookers. Concentration and breathing, the antidote to cynicism, The pole, like cat’s whiskers, In feline prance. Moment to moment, Heartbeat to heartbeat, The procession continues. With creeping inevitably, The destination is reached, And the walker falls to their death. Another adventurer steps out onto the wire, A descendant of the expired walker, Determined to complete life’s tightrope. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” LifePoetryPoemPoemsLife Goes OnPoems On LifeCircle Of LifeBloodlinesTightropeTightrope Walking Author:Stewart Stafford
“Pomona's Feast by Stewart Stafford Home from aggressive begging on November Eve, A horror movie that won't be finished in the background, The pirate's booty or robber's swag is examined. Face in the bag, a cornucopia of scents in the nostrils: Oranges, nuts, burnt popcorn, chocolate, Toffee apples, crisps, Liquorice Allsorts, and Rice Krispie cakes. A smörgåsbord Pomona's feast begins, As a maternal voice advises frugality, To no avail. Noses in the trough, Nothing eaten bears any relation to the thing eaten before or after, Aching gums, jaws, and bellies swiftly ensue. To bed to sleep it off, The next morning, it's déjà vu, The maternal voice again advises eating breakfast first, to no avail. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemHalloweenChildhood MemoriesSamhainTrick Or TreatAll Hallows EveHalloween PoemOctober 31stNovember Eve Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Unknowable Scribe by Stewart Stafford Behind the looking glass, Lurks the trembling hand of deception, How deep it goes. Scratching worthlessly on the glass, Yet leaving diamond shavings in its wake, To ponder over endlessly. Question not, despise not, Seek no answers here For there are none to give. The cygnet is mooncalf, To the mighty swan, Cat's paw to catchpenny. Birther to birthing, A classification of bedding, To redress the baseness of our grindings. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemWriterShakespeareWriters LifeWilliam ShakespeareShakespearean InsultShakespeare S PlaysPoems On WritingEdward De Vere Author:Stewart Stafford
“For Your Consideration by Stewart Stafford Stellar Scrutiny is required, Taffeta blindfolds though, Ordinarily obscure. Three and fifty miles hence, Wander those in denial, Of the untrustworthy father in the palace. Belated guests to the conflagration, Are served up as fodder, Consistently denied peerages and proper burial. Venerated with daggers, Erstwhile companions stoned, Ruled And Martyred. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemStewart StaffordFrancis BaconHidden MeaningsMasonic MysteriesCodedStewart Stafford PoemsSteganographic EncodingTemple Mount Author:Stewart Stafford
“Sweet Elephant of the Morning by Stewart Stafford O sweet elephant of the morning, What loud noise you make, With your leaden feet, And trumpet voice. You spray water, On your thick, dusty skin, And on anyone in proximity, To your body. Your trunk is a grey, reaching arm, And your tusks resemble curved lances, Or elongated walrus teeth, To fight off rivals. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemPoemsAnimalsElephantsWildlifeZoosElephantWild AnimalsChildren S Poems Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Hibernal Realm by Stewart Stafford The compass knows not which way to go, And Life's submerged in winter's snow, The path before us fit for sleds, Dusted with a blizzard's web. Clear a path and the light the way, And get us through to break of day, Step through the ice-encrusted door, That shows the way to the dawn thaw. Stay too long in the hibernal realm, And the chill begins to overwhelm, Sit, rest, and take respite, And become at one with fading light. See The Winter King and then bow down, With frostbite smile and holly crown, Icicle sceptre makes the heartbeat slow, Lonely as the North wind blows. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryColdPoemWinterSnowPoemsBlizzardFrostbiteWinter KingWintry Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Shadow Waltz by Stewart Stafford She lays with me by night, Hewn from dark solitude, Without malice aforethought. Creaking springs as she crawls to me, In a frantic state, Babbling desperately about her pain. Nails caress my abdomen and chest, Strange warmth emanates from her, Then she rises. And is gone, Melting with the corner darkness again, Watching my slumber from the shadows. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemPoemsSandmanSuccubusGhostly EncounterSuccubus DreamsNight VisitorShadow PeopleShadow Person Author:Stewart Stafford
“Saturday Sonnet by Stewart Stafford The Bard once wrote that love is blind, Desire’s muslin cloth veils the eyes behind, As a hog for truffles nosing in dirt, The human sniffs out a way to flirt, Flippant words become overture, And a dungeon-dweller emerges pure, Love’s great story blossoming anew, Past indiscretions in a penitent’s pew, Hearts as one, a confluence of minds, Time to think of the tie that binds, Sure of footing and glad of heart Wheels turning on a bridal cart, Handsome husband, pretty wife, Set out together in this thing called life. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemWeddingFlirtingSonnetLove PoemLove PoemsLove PoetryPoems On LoveSonnets Author:Stewart Stafford
“A Contagion Abroad by Stewart Stafford Overblown epidemic, Inferno pandemic, Death takes a vacation. Bird flu, Bat stew, Churning, gagging virus brew, Man the panic stations. Contaminate, capitulate, Sickly state, funeral date, A lost generation. Depopulate, inoculate, Virologists thwart fate, The world's rehabilitation. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemPoemsCoronavirusCovid 19PandemicVaccinesVirusEpidemicInoculation Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Anatomy of Trades by Stewart Stafford Detective Toes, Senator Nose, Eye-eye Captain, And Rhinologist Blows. Banker Bum, Painter Thumb, Judge Mental, And Dentist Gum. Dancer Hip, President Lip, Dermatologist Peel, Goalie Fingertip. Beautician Eyelash, Barber Moustache Boxer Fist, And Doctor Rash. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” JobsPoetryPoemIronyPoemsSatireAnatomyFunny PoemFunny PoetryTrades Author:Stewart Stafford
“In Bastet's Thrall by Stewart Stafford A sight unseen, Eyes of feline green, Make me do their bidding. That whiskered mask, In adulation basks, Affection makes a killing. Great but small, In Bastet's thrall, It dares me with a licking. In regal fur, A seductive purr, And tail brazenly quitting. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemCatPoemsCatsFelineEgyptian GodsCats And Other MythsCat LoversBastet Author:Stewart Stafford
“Daily Bread by Stewart Stafford Butcher short-changed me again, There’s sawdust in the sausages, Grocer’s growing grosser and then, A proposition with my messages. The driving instructor’s pissed on bends, I went and told his mother, The barman’s watering down pints for friends Like he’s feeding his baby brother. The barber’s still one hair off, One side doesn’t match the other, Bookie won’t take my bets and lends, The landlord another sucker. Tossed out in the street to fend for myself, With all the other refuse, Garbage man fills his truck with me, At least I still have one use. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” JobsPoetryComedyPoemWittyWitPoemsPoems On LifeFunny PoemOccupations Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Unanswered Question by Stewart Stafford Ask a body why it lies in a grave, And no answer shall ring in your ears, Ask the rat that squeaks like a knave, And there is nothing to ease your fears. See lightning's fiery eye wink a hint, Hear thunder belching out proud, Hail is flicked off like lint, Dumb as a corpse in its shroud. Mourners do splutter and cry, In unison or solitary grief, Hysteria governs their reply, Tongues pocketed by sorrow's thief. Only when you lay in dirt senselessly, Do answers come out of reach, Secrets clouded eternally, To an owl's shrill and wise screech. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” DeathPoetryNatureGriefPoemMourningMeaning Of LifeDeath And DyingLife After DeathDeath And Taxes Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Final Word by Stewart Stafford On the wall of a prominent jacks, Came anonymous, scurrilous attacks, Innuendo and defamatory jibes, Scrawled by cowardly scribes, Dared the executioner’s axe. And whoever wrote the indecent graffiti, Would never say it to the King in a meeting, He’d cry: ‘Off with their heads,’ Then sleep safely in bed, Having the final word takes some beating. And as they walked to an undignified death, No sarcastic words came from their breath, They were up for the chop, On the executioner’s block, And would plead it was all for a bet. So if you’ve ill words planned, Remember to keep them in hand, Or the butt of your jokes, Becomes your executioner’s host, And that’s the end of your brand. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemKarmaExecutionGraffitiInnuendoDefamationLimerickEmperor S New ClothesCut Down To Size Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Cavalier Servente by Stewart Stafford Her lover creeps On stairs that creak To where the mistress sleeps To wet his beak. Affairs in the dark When matrimony is parked A disloyal lark Starts the carnal spark. At break of day The cuckolder creeps away From naughty play He’s had his way. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemCheatingMistressAdulteryAffairsCheating In RelationshipsCheating SpouseCuckoldryCuckold Author:Stewart Stafford
“Season's Greetings by Stewart Stafford Season's Greetings To those we are needing, While I am leading The Festive charge. Christmas love is fleeting, The snow is sleeting, And there's every chance of feeling, A thaw in my cold heart. Season's Greetings everywhere, Let War cease and all be fair, A heart that's full of Christmas cheer, Bravely faces the New Year. And so, we feast and celebrate, For those we've lost, we contemplate, Christmas is an emotional stocktake, Of those still here and those that are late. The year winds down to that last date, Resolutions tempting fate, New Fear's Eve, many hate, And choose to socially-isolate. Season's Greetings while you can, To every woman, child, and man, Season's Greetings, don't you wait Hold back now, and it's too late. And in the end, all we do, Is create memories for the few, Who mattered while we strode this earth, Then back to the place before our birth. Season's Greetings, decorations down, Bittersweet crunching sounds, Topple the tree to live again, Twelfth Night, the inevitable end. © Stewart Stafford, 2020. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemChristmasXmasChristmas CheerSocial DistancingNew Year S EveSeason S GreetingsTwelfth NightChristmas Truce Author:Stewart Stafford
“Advent Season by Stewart Stafford A house bedecked in verdant wonderment, With lights that mirror the starry firmament, Where the Christmas Star did once shine, To guide worshippers to the Divine. The wreath on the door is a welcome portal, For any passing cheerful mortal, Wishing to enjoy warm company, And mountains of gravy-drowned turkey. Nostrils fill with cooking scents, That waft through the house with excitement A feast to consume on the 25th, After the Man in Red has paid a visit. Children orchestrate great noise, And sit and play with gifted toys, While adults watch and reminisce, On childhoods past and favourite gifts. The Wheel of Time turns, Festivities End, And the year itself begins again. In Time's juvenile crawl, Or adult speed, Life zips forward, and history repeats. © Stewart Stafford, 2020. All rights reserved.” PoetryPoemChristmasTime PassingAdventChristmas DinnerChristmas DecorationsChristmas PastChildhood ChristmasesChristmas Star Author:Stewart Stafford
“In icy footsteps do actors tread in moonlight's chill, In crystalline depth, The players set, To entertain and do no ill. © Stewart Stafford, 2020. All rights reserved.” PoetryActorsPoemDramaTheatreFootstepsPlayersEntertainThespiansThe Stage Author:Stewart Stafford
“Unspoken Sonata by Stewart Stafford Love's lullaby's unheard duet, Kisses of life drown shallow opinions, Prejudged by logic, yet set apart, Our oasis bars the negative legions. Eternal tongues of a mother lode; Looks of love, a second-sight ploy, To visions beyond earthly interpretation; Dance down darkest paths to ecstatic joy. Spoiler seers nix romantic ideals; Abyssal agendas in jealousy's biome, A caterpillar doxxed for its butterfly shape, Real love's navigator guides us home. © 2025, Stewart Stafford. All rights reserved.” LoveInspirationalRomancePoetryHopeRelationshipsMetaphorContemporaryValentine S DayModern Poetry Author:Stewart Stafford
“Ozzy Zig had his gig, One last, wild Brummie jig.” PoetryTributeRock MusicHeavy MetalBirminghamBlack SabbathMusic HistoryPrince Of DarknessBrummieOzzy Osbourne Author:Stewart Stafford
“The Architect’s Prologue: The Occupation of the Void by Stewart Stafford “Lost are the seekers of miracles. Only in the end, in the telling and re-telling of the tale, is the miracle seen — Life." I crave the blank space that once was nothing— a silent void, an impatient canvas, a domain unclaimed. The emptiness that sired every iota of art on earth, fashioned by those daring hands to cram with humour, fear, obsession, logic, love, or passion. The human animal’s cursed superpower — consciousness — Finitude’s simultaneous scalpel and wound, lock-picked instinct’s shackles, freed this chosen being, to the detached observance of its kind and the world. As the only creature gifted enough to ask “why,” it sought meaning and virgin-birthed the quadruplet firmaments of art, theology, politics, and philosophy— the golden ignition of the divine spark of creativity writ large. Feast upon the field of canary yellow rapeseed Translucent on a day of blinding sunlight. See how the colour transcends structure and lives, dances, and breathes— Nature unveils its primordial palette, inviting insects to pollinate and Man to dare to dream of creating torch-bearing vibrancy, shockingly intense, and timeless. If your written words become literal nails to crucify you with, Then you have done your job well. You provoked a reaction. Writing that moves not is a body without a soul— a comrade of the anonymous unknown soldiers of literature. Let untouched parchment be our stage, and the vacuum our rousing scene, Promethean agency as alchemy’s fire— not supplicant-sought from unseen forces, but struck from the living earth itself. When golden boughs spring from rotting trunks, mortal man resists their provenance; yet the evidence of his eyes is the blinding truth. © 2026, Stewart Stafford. All rights reserved.” PhilosophyInspirationPoetryNatureCreativityPowerCreationMetaphorExistentialismPromethean Author:Stewart Stafford
“Snowbound Condemnation by Stewart Stafford My vigil for a shabby scarecrow, Cruciform in a snowdrift field, Its saviour-suited arms clawing At corvids, frozen heels to Heaven. Its mouth a wailing O-shape, Lamenting deafened ears of corn, Resuscitation for a fool's errand, In a hysterical chorus of biting gales. Haunting a sycamore tree, complicit, I witnessed desolation's spectacle, Half-expecting a condemned miracle, This pilgrim genuflected into green slush. © 2025, Stewart Stafford. All rights reserved.” PoetryWinterNarrativeMelancholyExistentialGothicSymbolicDesolationScarecrowReligious Imagery Author:Stewart Stafford