Winter to Spring (A swift jotting!)

Seasons montage borrowed from CCW blog by Yvonne Dias

Cambridge Christian Writers - UK  (CCW) meets once a month via Zoom. During each meeting we have a 20minute interlude in which we are challenge to write to a theme provided by one of the other members. Last week it was to write a short piece drawing on the common-place descriptions of a season (or seasons): then to make that a base for further development in whatever direction seems. I completed the first phase which, even despite some editing has a feeling of something written in haste - but maybe something more thought through will emerge in time. Here is 

Winter to Spring

Orion, cited in Amos and Job 

hunts way up high in our sky;

so in our planet’s northern climes

most trees and plants know they must die.

 

But death for them is merely sleep,

the sap abates to let their cells

recover through the winter deep,

to burst afresh in Leo’s spell.

 

This resurrection is a sign

for us who’ve weathered winter’s steel,

the plants revive: new life divine,

as Easter brings its big reveal.

All the group’s efforts are posted to the Cambridge Christian Writers’ blog which you can find at Cambridge Christian Writers blog - Click Here

CHATBOTS - FAKE FRIENDS! Poem 'If You Should Be Craving A Listener'

Image from Pixabay Free images produced by NoName_13

The Observer of 19^th April 2026 (page 12) carried an investigative article ‘Fake friends: how AI chatbots destroy lives. It is a deeply disturbing article by Patricia Clark and Owen Thomas with a by-line that reads ‘Psychotic episodes and mental illness induced by artificial intelligence are on the rise as users become addicted, leading to lawsuits and questions about safety’ 

 

Here's a response to that article which I have written, leaving out the horror of the dramas cited in the article, but hoping it might prove an effective cautionary verse for some on the brink of engaging , possibly dangerously, with a chatbot.

 

If you should be craving a listener,

hear the thoughts of a poet, perturbed

that your searches might lead to a chatterbot,

that will draw you towards an absurd

mishmash of false affirmations

of your biased or self-formed ideas. 

It will scrape every nook of the wild web, 

boost false hopes or strengthen your fears

without any hint of a challenge,

without any feeling or tears.

 

It cannot give helpful direction

for its mandate is solely – ‘Engage’,

by ensnaring you in its inhuman

algorithmical cage,

from which escape may be hopeless

for the cage is a closed trap, unless

you find a considerate human

who can break you out of the mess.

 

Riverscape Delight.

We are back at the riverside cottage that we first rented last May. The views across the ebbing and flowing river, exposing saltmarsh and tiny islets of grass and reed are stunning. For me, it is a veritable paradise that makes me want to write and paint, to versify and create, and, given the amazing late April weather to just ‘be’ and revel in the beauty of the place.

So, within hours of arrival, a first draft of the following poem had emerged, followed by an enjoyable but challenging few hours, here and there, to edit the less satisfying word usage that is almost inevitable amongst any first flush of ideas. The outcome, I’ve entitled Riverscape Delight.

 Evening across the Alde estuary

We are privileged to be able to delight

in the light,

which bathes the estuary,

gently, gently, gently.

 

Each minute:

indeed, 

in every moment of this special evening,

there is change,

which merits

the tripping

of yet another shutter-fall

to capture a microcosm

of the awesome beauty 

of this exquisite place.

(and this is repeated every evening of every day,

as it has been for millennia).

 

For a while pink predominates

as the tide ebbs,

causing shallow ponds 

to emerge, as the water recedes.

 

Dark shapes,

wheel, flutter and descend gently

to the water’s edge,

to forage whilst the light allows.

 

Sundown turns to dusk,

and dusk to darkness.

The riverscape is blanketed

with a peace

that millions can only dream of.

 

We are mightily blessed.

There is an earlier written companion poem to this called Cottage on The Cliff written in September last year

 

 

I Dream of a Conversation

 Desert by night - Pixabay Free Image by 

 Alexander1848

As a member of the Cambridge group of the Association of Christian Writers we were invited towrite about a dream in which Jesus appears. At first, I could not think where to go with that challenge. An idea gradually formed and turned into this poem.

I dream of a conversation

with Christ, whom I recognize

by the scars in his hands as he gestures

towards the vivid night sky.

 

We are sat on a rock in a desert

with the moon a sliver, so slight, 

that it barely makes any impact

on the stars, with their tremulous light.

 

I hear myself say to my Saviour

‘Were you really there when all this 

burst out of a void, prior to history

when substance streamed from an abyss?’

 

‘I was’, said a voice, calm and gentle,

‘It was turbulent! Matter and light

poured into space-time in a moment,

as Our Word breathed forth length, breadth and height’.

 

 

 

 

A HYMN FOR EARTHDAY (TOMORROW - April 22nd)

 EARTHDAY - APRIL 22nd

Make us Good Stewards, Lord

Tune: Hills of The North Rejoice

 

Make us good stewards, Lord,

of this your earthly home.

Help us be resolute

in curbing damage done

by fossil fuels and plastic waste,

and other ways earth is defaced.

 

Help us encourage hope

that the world can achieve,

limits to harm caused by

products to which we cleave,

which strip the world of minerals rare,

and plunder water without care.

 

Give us your people, Lord,

zeal so we might protest,

when justice is denied

by wealth’s voracious quests

That ransack earth, afflict the poor,

as greedy profiteers make more.

 

'LOGGING ON’ a Cross and Cosmos Prayer at Iona Morning Prayer

Iona from Fionnphort

Yesterday was a special day in terms of getting the faith and science message around. The Iona Community’s  Morning Worship, Prayers of Gratitude and Concern, featured a prayer entitled ‘Logging On’  posted here back in 2013. It lifts many concerns there are around internet use. Of course, if the poem was more recently written it would have needed to incorporate concerns about AI. So with that reservation, here is the prayer, 

Logging On

Almighty God,

We thank you for the wonders of the internet and the intellect that gave rise to the system.

We pray that many, many people might long for the web to be a safe environment and keep that in their prayers.

We pray that those whose job it is to identify and remove pernicious sites may be given wisdom, insight, courage and determination to perform their task well and that you will protect them from being adversely affected by the material they find.

We pray for parents seeking to protect their children from malign material: that there will be help at hand to steer them well.

We pray that children who stray into corrosive sites might have the courage to share their anxieties with an adult concerned for their safety and able to guide them.

We pray for investigative journalists who seek to expose these pernicious influences: that you will keep them safe and courageous. Amen 

and you can hear it read by me HERE

The Whole Cosmos Is The Lord’s (Psalm 24 re-imagined)

 

How extraordinary! 

An hour long solar eclipse

 as witnessed by the astronauts on the Artemis mission. 

A time to revisit an earlier re-imagining of Psalm 24

Psalm 24 For Today.

The whole cosmos is the Lord's and everything in it:

every particle of matter throughout the universe.

 

All human beings, the earth’s wild creatures and resources:

and unknown beings who may live on planets far beyond our reach.

Lift Up your heads, you galaxies, 

Bright Nova form a dazzling path,

That your great King of Glo-o-o-ory 

Through all your realms may nobly pass 

 

It was God commanded the deep realm of space, Come forth:

and it sprang into instant being.

 

He established light and dark; light to see the wonders of our generous planet: darkness to invite us to see the vastness of  creation.

You can listen  this and the rest of a reimagining of Psalm 24 at

https://youtu.be/4XHgjfVDhlY  

LOOKING FORWARD TO THE JOY OF EASTER: New Song - First to The Tomb Came Mary of Magdala

Here, at the beginning of Holy Week, I, with many others look towards the pain of Good Friday and the joy of the resurrection. I am glad to be able to post a new song (written jointly with Lois Pott with whom I’ve been collaborating in a monthly song-writing challenge) about the story we will hear on Sunday, of Mary being the first to the tomb.

Gethsemane Redeemed - a CGI of mine

First to the tomb came Mary of Magdala,

carrying oil and spices to clean

the blood-soaked body of Jesus, her Master.

Tears in her eyes from her grief and her pain.

 

Wondering how she could roll the great stone away, 

hoping the guards might regard her distress,

But seeing no-one, she paused in the darkness 

Stopped in her tracks by the tomb’s emptiness.

 

Dazed and afraid, Mary called John and Peter,

 they ran together with trembling and awe.

 Peter and John saw the cloths and the linen.

 Left Mary standing to weep at the door.

 

Deep in her grief and completely bewildered,
She asked a stranger if he could explain
But then a voice that she knew breathed out ‘Mary’: 

It was the Lord, raised to life once again

 

So as the first to encounter The Risen,
Jesus called Mary to witness that day

to bring the news to the men who had followed him 

First among equals, in God’s perfect way 

I love John’s Gospel version of the story of the first Easter Morning which reaches its climax as Jesus speaks his first post-Resurrection greeting to Mary who had been the first to the tomb and is, therefore, sometimes known as Apostle to The Apostles. It sits wonderfully alongside the story of the Samaritan woman at the well who becomes the first Evangelist. As a man, I feel I need to notice the way in which God puts women into key roles in these two instances. Hence the closing question in the song asking if God is inviting us to notice these important ‘firsts’ granted to women.

ALSO -  you may like to have a look at the various poems, songs and all-age activity which I have put together for use in Holy Week and Easter-tide. You will find them HERE

 

A WOMAN ARCHBISHOP - PRAISE THE LORD!

Today, I break from my Lenten sequence to Celebrate the marvel of a woman becoming Archbishop of Canterbury. Here’s my Facebook celebratory note

Yesterday we watched the amazing moments that a woman became Archbishop of Canterbury - for which I, among many others, give thanks and praise.

And here’s a bit of thinking that has emerged for me in the last 24 hours.

I have never been able to understand how the whims of a monarch to set up and brutally promote a renegade church, could be in God’s plan. HOWEVER, if the Reformation in England had not happened (with all its grisly history), this amazing event could not have happened. Rome, with its much longer history, hasn’t reached there yet: but the Anglican church has managed to thoroughly overturn the huge injustice of male superiority, which should, surely, never have been part of the church of Christ.

What a day! What a celebration! What Joy! Praise the Lord.

LENT WITH TALLIS’ CANON - DAY 36: Our Newsfeeds Are Incessantly

                                                    

Here is the Lent - Day 36 prayer verse

Our newsfeeds are incessantly

revealing war and poverty.

It is too easy to be blind

To outrages on humankind

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Can be sung to Tallis’ Canon with the refrain - see posting for Ash Wednesday which can be found HERE 

ALSO - With Holy Week approaching, you may like to have a look at the various poems, songs and all-age activity which I have put together for use in Holy Week and Easter-tide. You will find them HERE

 

LENT WITH TALLIS’ CANON - DAY 35: My Pride, Too Easily, Begins

                                                   

Here is the Lent - Day 35 prayer verse

My pride, too easily, begins

to surface, when I’m cornered in

a situation where I think

I’m right, so from it will not shrink.

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Can be sung to Tallis’ Canon with the refrain - see posting for Ash Wednesday which can be found HERE 

ALSO - With Holy Week approaching, you may like to have a look at the various poems, songs and all-age activity which I have put together for use in Holy Week and Easter-tide. You will find them HERE

 

LENT WITH TALLIS’ CANON - DAY 34: Our Wastefulness is Everywhere:

                                                  

Here is the Lent - Day 34 prayer verse

Our wastefulness is everywhere:

it spoils the land and fouls the air.

help me take an assertive stance

‘gainst waste born of extravagance

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Can be sung to Tallis’ Canon with the refrain - see posting for Ash Wednesday which can be found HERE 

ALSO - With Holy Week approaching, you may like to have a look at the various poems, songs and all-age activity which I have put together for use in Holy Week and Easter-tide. You will find them HERE

 

LENT WITH TALLIS’ CANON - DAY 33: May I Speak Truth to Power, Dear Lord

                                                  

Here is the Lent - Day 33 prayer verse

May I speak truth to power, dear Lord

whenever justice is ignored:

please keep me faithful, bold and strong 

despite threats from those in the wrong

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Can be sung to Tallis’ Canon with the refrain - see posting for Ash Wednesday which can be found HERE 

ALSO - With Holy Week approaching, you may like to have a look at the various poems, songs and all-age activity which I have put together for use in Holy Week and Easter-tide. You will find them HERE

LENT WITH TALLIS’ CANON - DAY 32: It Is Too Easy To Forget

                                                 

Here is the Lent - Day 32 prayer verse

It is too easy to forget

to give our thanks when prayers are met:

also for good gifts ‘by the way’ 

and unrequested, day on day.

 

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Can be sung to Tallis’ Canon with the refrain - see posting for Ash Wednesday which can be found HERE 

ALSO - With Holy Week approaching, you may like to have a look at the various poems, songs and all-age activity which I have put together for use in Holy Week and Easter-tide. You will find them HERE

LENT WITH TALLIS’ CANON - DAY 31: ‘Revenge is Sweet,’

                                                

Here is the Lent - Day 31 prayer verse

‘Revenge is sweet,’ it’s often said,

but that should fill the heart with dread;

for when we try to ‘pay things back’,

we hurt ourselves as we attack

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Can be sung to Tallis’ Canon with the refrain - see posting for Ash Wednesday which can be found HERE 

ALSO - With Holy Week approaching, you may like to have a look at the various poems, songs and all-age activity which I have put together for use in Holy Week and Easter-tide. You will find them HERE

LENT WITH TALLIS’ CANON- DAY 30: Sarcastic Comments Sometimes Slip

                                               

Here is the Lent - Day 30 prayer verse

Sarcastic comments sometimes slip

our thoughtless or malicious lips:

they may be wily, smart or cruel.

but bitterness, they’ll often fuel

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Can be sung to Tallis’ Canon with the refrain - see posting for Ash Wednesday which can be found HERE 

ALSO - With Holy Week approaching, you may like to have a look at the various poems, songs and all-age activity which I have put together for use in Holy Week and Easter-tide. You will find them HERE

LENT WITH TALLIS’ CANON - DAY 29: So Quickly, Filth and Bawdiness

                                              

Here is the Lent - Day 29 prayer verse

So quickly, filth and bawdiness

confuse and build up mental stress:

in face of either, we should quail:

embracing them, well-being fails.

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Can be sung to Tallis’ Canon with the refrain - see posting for Ash Wednesday which can be found HERE 

LENT WITH TALLIS’ CANON - DAY 28: Money and Wealth Are gods Today,

                                             

Here is the Lent - Day 28 prayer verse

Money and wealth are gods today,

for many who are led astray

believing these the keys to life:

Instead, they can cause dreadful strife.

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Father forgive, forgive

Father forgive

Can be sung to Tallis’ Canon with the refrain - see posting for Ash Wednesday which can be found HERE