Sitting together, two old friends
A gentle breeze in the air, we
Talked, with Rangitoto behind
Swaying trees on the beach front.
Like the trees we were at ease
As the evening sun’s last light
Shadowed the darkening sea
Which shimmered along the small
Waves breaking onto the beach
As buses stopped at regular
Intervals near the table we ate
From, perhaps to remind us
We both had come from difficult,
Poverty stricken backgrounds;
To gently tell us how special it
Is for the two of us to be able
To experience the finer things
In life, a glass of wine, a bowl
Of seafood chowder, and a plate
Of whitebait fritters, in such beautiful
Surroundings. Remembering my
Time in Auckland last year when,
Like two children who had discovered
The giant’s house, where you would
Visit me nearly daily in Westmere
Saying it was almost like the time
We shared a house together in
Mt Albert all those years ago.
So, take this poem as the poem
I have always meant to write for you
Yoko Ono once wrote ‘What’s the difference?’
In the days of Love in the Time of Covid Nineteen
In the lock-down daze: what’s the difference?
I’ll tell ya the difference was vast and extreme
In our human world of technology and greed
Of dreams and nightmares, of war and peace
The earth cried out this is more of what I need
Not running everywhere at speed and pace
There are birds in the sky now, not aeroplanes
The earth responds to the gentle rain that pours
Without acidic toxins polluting her mauri, her life-force
Cars no longer clog our streets and our lanes
The earth accepts from Cloud Nine and implores
People to look again before getting back on the horse
Poems © Michael O'Leary 2022