Valentine's Poetry Competition 2023

Our entries for 2023...

Our Winner for 2023 is... 

Jessica Crumpton

 

Silver Birch

The tiny silver birch tree planted

for our silver wedding day

was a wish our children granted

not to have cut flower bouquets.

The silver papery bark

The trunk now tall and strong

Loves indelible mark

even though you are dead and gone.

We watched the Longtails flock

hanging like Christmas baubles

and the Angle Shaded moths

and Greenfinch having quarrels.

Each season our tree brought more to enjoy

the Greater spotted woodpecker

that looked us in the eye

And once siskins for good measure.

Snow drops grow now around its roots

And wide branches protect them

bringing hope in small green shoots

Happy Valentine’s day in heaven.

 

Our entries for 2023 are...

The sea

Anna Banasiak

 

Our love is infinite

Your voice

echoes eternity

The sounds of the sea

absorbs moments

Ships sail lazily

Fluttering waves

fill me with desire

I see You,

as in my dream

Stay with me

forever

 ---

 

If I Were A Tree...

Sarah Mills

 

If I were a tree you’d be the sunrise

Helping me to photosynthesise.

Our love would definitely be one to last,

Soaked up by every chloroplast.

I’d grow so tall I’d dwarf the oak

And probably succumb to serious heatstroke

But our seedlings would be ever so cute

Running around barefoot and bareroot.

Life would surely be happy and sweet

Until a garden centre turned me into a seat.

Life would then be pretty rotten,

Sat on by every passing bottom

Pining for the time I was a tree

When the world was a lot smaller than me. 

 ---

 

Jill Carpenter

 

Tree To My door

Wonderful Gifts Galore

Lemon trees , Yellow

and Olive trees Green

Weeping Cherry, Pink

Or a Maple Tree, Red

An African Milk Tree

Or a Willow Wand Gift

A Berry Box with Raspberry & Blackberry too

Or a Dwarf Cherry Tree perhaps Apple or Pear

I wonder what My True Love

Will be sending to Me

No matter what they send me

Gold, Orange, Pink,

Red, Silver or White

From Tree to My Door

It is sure to Delight.

---

Sonia Sadoudi

 

The gift of green

Like the gift of you

Is the bloomcore

Of love's sweet dew

---

Alice Jevons

 

Love is in the air

You make me feel likes a billionaire

I will buy you flowers ,I would bring you joy and will try to never annoy .

like the stars in the sky , we would shine so bright. You are my kryptonite.

You are so worth the fight my beautiful bright light .

---

 

Glynis Boyne

 

My heart is filled with passion

It fill me through & through

I cannot eat , I cannot sleep

And all because of you

Oh ease this aching heart of mine

And say you’ll be my Valentine 💘

---

 

Andrew Rose

 

If I thought for just one moment that this would be my last breath,

I'd tell you I'll love you forever, even beyond death.

If I thought for just one moment that your face would be the last I'd see,

I'd take a million pictures and save them just for me.

If I thought for just one moment that your voice would be the last I'd hear,

I'd listen attentively and promise not to shed a tear.

If I thought for just one moment that your touch would be the last I'd feel,

I'd embrace you and know that this has all been real.

If I thought for just one moment that my heart would beat its last beat,

I'd thank the Lord for allowing us to meet

---

 

Kaye

 

Be still my beating heart ,they say

but that would mean im dead .

still love you in a million ways , still not quite right in the head 

---

 

Clare Sykes

 

Roots deep, leaves high,

You bring so much life,

To my world so dry,

With your beauty and might.

 

You sway with the breeze,

And bloom with delight,

A symbol of peace,

In the day and the night.

 

You are my dear friends,

With whom I can confide,

My heart finds its ends,

In your beauty and pride.

 

So on this Valentine's day,

I want to say to thee,

Thank you for being here to stay, my lovely plants, you mean the world to me.

---

 

Jessica Crumpton

 

Silver Birch

The tiny silver birch tree planted

for our silver wedding day

was a wish our children granted

not to have cut flower bouquets.

The silver papery bark

The trunk now tall and strong

Loves indelible mark

even though you are dead and gone.

We watched the Longtails flock

hanging like Christmas baubles

and the Angle Shaded moths

and Greenfinch having quarrels.

Each season our tree brought more to enjoy

the Greater spotted woodpecker

that looked us in the eye

And once siskins for good measure.

Snow drops grow now around its roots

And wide branches protect them

bringing hope in small green shoots

Happy Valentine’s day in heaven.

---

 

Hilary Evans

 

The Wisdom of Trees

 

Branches brush their velvety, mossy fingers

evoking a rhythm of the beat of nature's heart,

a breeze blows and a gentler pace breathes.

 

A storm grows and they scratch and drum,

with fearful passions striving forward to peace.

 

They chant the songs of the seasons, and

break out new living leaves, that birth in

bright greens, falling to die in gold and yellow,

 

delighting the eyes of those who look, and

filling the ready minds with the knowledge

of their own destination with the deep peace

of knowing, that we share a soul cycle of

life that begets life; where the sensible stop.

 

to

listen to the centuries of wisdom gathered

in their roots, where gentle voices are always

speaking, in low murmurs that only those

listening may hear above the susurrous

of daily living; crowding out cluttered minds.

---

 

Sonnet of Euphemism

Mohan Rangam

 

Obscured Cupid as a brimming stream

To drench when thou hath bathe

 

Transformed he as a bracelet

And hath entwined ye abdomen

 

Disguised as maid in thy harem

To admire your ravishing beauty

 

Art thou giveth aroma to flowers?

For sure! when thou smile, feel I.

 

Chisels he, insanely thy name

On his love-s*aft

 

Beneath the Sea, scribes he bewitching songs

That testaments his lunatic love on you

 

Why thou maketh virile men fanatic?

Cupid! Ensconse her from this tranquil earth.

---

A Question of Love

Anne Palmer

 

'Will you marry me?' she asked,

her eyes filled with adoration.

He was caught unawares

by the boldness of her question.

'But I'm fifty years old

and you're a woman of twenty.

Is it my money you want?

I admit there's plenty!'

She gazed up at him with affection,

like a puppy in awe of her master.

'I don't care about your money,

it's you I'm after!'

He took her in his arms,

she had awoken his sleeping heart.

'If what you say is true,

then we should never be apart.'

'I love you,' she whispered.

'Don't you ever doubt me.

I'll never be unkind,

just you wait and see.'

Even then he felt unsure,

but decided not to worry unduly,

for he fancied she'd have no objection

to starting the honeymoon prematurely!

---

 

Rachel Burdett

 

We inherited a garden.

It was very overgrown

in that magic way that gardens are

when they’ve been left alone.

We ventured in with secateurs,

with spades and muddy boots,

to investigate our treasure trove

of roots and fruits and shoots.

 

We found hellebores and hedgehogs,

fritillaries and frogs.

There were butterflies on buddleias

and beetles under logs.

 

Then we started dreaming,

of how to make it ‘ours’.

We nurtured seeds, created beds,

and filled them up with flowers.

 

We planted veggies, watched them grow,

beneath the apple trees.

We hung up feeders for the birds,

invited all the bees.

 

Sometimes we got discouraged

by the heat or frost or rain,

by the times we simply got it wrong

and had to start again.

 

But we persevered, side by side,

the two of us together.

I love this garden that we’ve grown

and I’ll love you, forever.

---

 

Love of my life

Lungelo Ntuli

 

The joyness of my strive

Blessed with you dead or alive

An Angel that has fallen from the sky

Truly there's no reason for me to cry

 

You say you are mentally talented

I say you need to be fully apprehended

You leave a mark wherever you go

You make everything around me glow

 

I'm in love with you no matter what

I know the feeling i can feel it in my gut

My treasure ,my desire my dreamaker

My pleasure,my attire my icebreaker

 

I hope this feeling never ends

Come rain ,come storm you'll always be in my heart

---

 

Neil Gauld

 

If you were a tree,

What would you be?

One that looks fine

Like you, my valentine.

Are you a Palm?

You look so calm

this early morning,

when the sun is just dawning.

With friends on the beach,

you surely can teach

how to weather a storm,

it's perfectly norm.

Like wedded life,

you deal with the strife

my beautiful darling,

my wonderful wife

---

 

Unfunny Valentine

Allen Ashley

 

You're not my funny Valentine.

I'm not smiling with my heart -

it's hard enough to keep the bloody

thing pumping the rest of the time

without performing expressionist tricks.

I don't laugh at your looks but I won't

linger on your photograph, either.

You're not my favourite work

of art. That's The Scapegoat

by William Holman Hunt but

that's "a whole nother story" as people

say these days.

And not at all romantic.

P.S. Don't keep changing your

hair. All those products will

eventually make it fall out and

you'll be bald on top like I am.

We'll clack together like two

snooker balls. Sweet.

---

 

Anna Okereafor

 

Knock, knock

Who's there??

Is me Valenty

Valenty who??

Valentine be my Valentine ❤️🥰

---

 

Peter Smith

 

Scarlet bow and royal gold lid

cartwheel in the wind, tossed

by her clutching, lusting fingers

coveting a catch of cocoa kisses

 

Puckering cherry lips blossom

and she coos in pleasure, ooh

with a ruby heart oozing desire

she melts inside cupid’s coffer

 

Struck by his arrow she quivers

and charms from bouquet cups

caramels, cordials, creams and

truffles laid in a nest of dreams

 

Mint upon mayans, maples too

lolling on the seas of her mouth

devoured in her tongue’s caress

tawny cream laves her silky lips

 

While by the fire her lover glows

in passion’s flame a ready desire

cupid’s zephyr sweetly blows

to fan her raging heart’s delight

---

 

Daffodils

Ben Parker

 

She likes daffodils

They're beautiful; they're cheap.

She deserves roses but wouldn't ask.

She likes daffodils. A pound for a bunch.

Tomorrow I'll buy her roses.

 

Cold nights and storage heaters,

A balance of sixty pence.

Nothing spent but the dignity

To leave her daffodils weeping

Upon the shop counter.

 

Daisies, she likes daises.

They're elegant; they're free.

She deserves daffodils but wouldn't ask.

She likes daisies. I'll get a handful.

Tomorrow I'll buy her roses.

---

 

Sandra Clarke

 

Love is in the air.....

My heart flutters when you're there.

On the day we met I knew

I was the perfect match for you.

 

You're always smiling, always fair,

When I need you, you're always there.

Never complaining, even when tired,

You're a special person to be admired.

 

Flowers, meals, each romantic date;

Precious memories with my soul mate.

Now thirty six years have gone by

Our precious love will never die.

 

These words of love are sincere,

In my heart you are very dear.

On Valentine's Day you deserve your due,

With an extra special gift for you.

---

 

Sarah Razaq

 

Roses are red, violets are blue,

U chose her, oh boohoo.

Strong, determined I shall rise,

While you're with her and her guys.

Faithful is what you can't be,

But then again neither is she.

Match made in heaven is what it seems,

Karma shall strike and I reign supreme.

Seconds is what you will be, while I sit at home with our 3.

Broken family is what you have made, while playing happy families with this charade.

---

 

Love token

Shirley Cook

 

I find the Welsh love spoon

in the drawer beneath old cutlery.

The wooden heart-shaped

handle is chipped now, brass bowl

tarnished with age. We kept it for years

in the glass sugar dish - a wedding gift.

You bought the spoon

in Harlech, where we spent

our honeymoon. How it rained.

Soaked, we sheltered in the castle

shop. A woman, excited to hear

we were newly-weds, said we

should buy a Welsh love spoon,

to ensure eternal happiness.

Fifty years later, she was not wrong.

---

 

Kirsty Connor

 

Roses are red

Violets are blue

You are my soul mate

My one and only "I do!"

 

We met on a blind date

23 years ago

From the moment we met

Our love seemed to grow

 

I will love you forever

Til death do us part

My lover, my Valentine

The keeper of my heart

---

 

Roopeps Disley

 

Your smile is like a beautiful rainbow,

Your eyes are mesmorizing like fallen snow,

Your laugh makes me warm inside,

Your touch is exciting like a water slide,

I love your more and more each day,

Please be be my valentine every day

---

 

Hayley Robinson

 

I stood trying not to hover like a May flower .

Unbothered still , but wanting you to notice me .

My arms reached skyward to wave at you , as you

moved closer .

 

For I could take small pleasure , in a glance from you .

My cheeks melt , when you make me smile .

Your hair glistens like Gold in the sunlight .

 

The trees whisper a love tale cast within

their shadows . And you reach into your pocket .

And take out your penknife , starting to carve

my name deep within the old oak tree ,

where I first met you .

 

My heart ascended like air carried motionless

upon a cloud . It was at that moment my soul

shifted , and I realised that you loved me

---

 

Karen Foy

 

There once was a tree hugger named Joe

Every Valentine's Day he would know

To travel far and wide,

His emotions he'd not hide,

And spread love wherever he'd go.

--- 

Roses are red, violets are blue,

Our love is like a blooming garden, it's true.

With you by my side, I can thrive,

Together we're a beautiful sight, to come alive.

 

You're my sunflower, always bright,

Bringing joy to my day and night.

Our love is strong and will grow,

Forever a wildflower, aglow.

 

Happy Valentine's Day, my love,

Together we're a masterpiece from above.

Our love is a beautiful flower,

Forever blooming, hour after hour.

---

 

Beth Tafat

 

An Oak tree stands tall and proud,

Its branches reaching to the clouds.

Its roots run deep, like true love's might,

An unshakable force, a beautiful sight.

 

Like this tree, our love will grow,

With each passing year, its beauty will show.

Through the seasons, come rain or shine,

Our love will stand the test of time.

 

Let us be like this Oak, strong and free,

With love as the root, and honesty.

Together, our love will never fade,

A beautiful bond, forever made.

 

So on this valentine, I want to say,

That my love for you, will never sway.

Like an oak in a forest, we'll stand tall,

Together forever, through it all.

---

 

Saint Valentine

Wendy Heath

 

Saint Valentine was a priest who lived in the third century AD. He was sentenced to death but no criminal was he.

The emperor of Rome, Claudius was his name, forbid his soldiers to marry throughout his reign. He feared a wife would make his men weak, there prospects for victory on the battel field bleak. These were his predictions for a soldier who is wed, to be laying in the dirt wounded or dead.

Saint Valentine was a man with a higher vocation to heal the souls of men from every station, in secret the couples he did wed, allowing soldiers to take a wife to their bed.

Claudius was angry and he took his revenge, Valentine was to be executed and his life was to end.

Imprisoned Valentine love he did find, his jailers daughter was both beautiful and kind, and what should have been his darkest of days turned out to be his happiest in many different ways. History tells us that when the day came for his life to end an urgent letter to his girl he did send. This letter of true love he then did sign.

From your Valentine.

Saint Valentine was executed in Rome on the 14th February in the third century AD.

---

 

A Corinthian Sonnet

Annie Francis

 

Love is fragrant,

Love is brined,

Love tastes better unrefined.

 

You do not envy,

I do not boast,

We both like jammy buttered toast.

 

We honour one another,

Serve each other first,

Try to keep our crumpets,

Our home truths with tea dispersed.

 

Anoint our heads with olives,

Forgive us when we idle,

Cover us with fig leaves,

Our love will never bridle;

 

It is always hand picked,

Home grown,

Over flowing

Barrow loads

Of preserving

fruit.

---

 

Kelly-Jae Lowe

 

My beloved mighty oak, so big, so strong,

Been around for years and will stay for longer,

A stalwart of our forests, a soldier of the glade,

A mother, a father, dependable and unafraid,

A friend and an ally, the forest inspector,

The woodland guardian, the noble protector.

A tree so ancient and one to admire,

A coppice master, you are my heart's truest desire.

---

 

Meeting My Valentine

Sue and Dave Birch

 

 

Wide eyes meeting through the trees

Not across a room, but in a gentle breeze

Both out walking in nature's glory

So begins our Valentine's story

'Forest bathing' we'd call it now

As we wandered under leafy boughs

Both soaking up the sights and sounds

Of wooded glades and leaf-strewn grounds

Shyly I walked over to say "hello"

As we watched the wildlife come and go

We started talking, my new friend and me

About the majesty of ancient trees

We'd much in common, were so alike

To be together just felt so right

Immersed in greenery in our little world

Of bark and blossom, leaves unfurled

And forty years on its just the same

My spine tingles when you call my name

Never to be parted now you're mine

My precious darling valentine

---

 

Dale Gray

 

A man falls deeply in love,

With a woman like no other,

Her smile a gentle dove,

That makes his heart flutter.

 

Her laugh is music to his ears,

Her eyes the stars above,

With her, he has no fears,

And finds his soul renewed with love.

 

Her touch is like a warm embrace,

Her presence, a calming breeze,

Together, they find a place,

Where love and peace never cease.

 

She's his sun in the darkest night,

His comfort through the storms,

With her, everything feels right,

 

And he knows he'll always be warm.

In love, he finds his home,

With her, he'll forever be,

Together, they'll never roam,

For she's the only one he'll ever need.

---

 Roses are red, and violets are blue, The trees and the flowers, they whisper of you. Their petals so soft, leaves so serene, A symbol of love, evergreen.

In the fields of love, where nature prevails, The trees sway gently, to the soft morning gales.

Their branches entwine, like two hearts as one, A love so pure, it has just begun.

So on this Valentine's Day, my love, so true, I give you my heart, forever I'll cherish you. With trees and flowers, a symbol of our love, Together, forever, soaring high like a dove

---

 

Alison Ford

 

My Garden is Green:

The Grass is green

The Leaves are green

The Limes are green

The Pears are green.

You wear green:

I like green!

 

Your Garden is Red:

The sky is red

The trees are red

Apples are red

Tomatoes are red.

You wear red:

I like red!

 

Our Garden is Gold:

The sun is gold

The light is gold

The bush is gold

The tree is gold.

We wear gold:

We like gold!

 

When I found you I struck gold

Your hair is gold

Your heart is gold

Your words are gold

Your roses are gold

Our rings are gold

I love gold.

---

 

All my dreams

Moray McGowan

 

All my dreams

That I thought had fled beyond the stars

And there shriveled into dust

Have gathered in a noisy crowd outside your window

Yes, down there in the garden

In the place

Where croaking toads that wondrous summer night

Bade our mad potlatch begin

But don't get up

My dreams will lift your latch and climb your stair

And lie beside you

Kiss your cheeks

Dance across your skin, and sprinkle

Blossoms in your hair

---

 

I will love 'Merlot' for ever   

Zoe Richards

 

Not that gorgeous wine that I'm partial to

But my tree which from a forked twig I grew

My Cercis canadensis with its heart shaped leaves

and beautiful shades that through the year it achieves.

It first brings pink flowers in spring

then lime green leaves, fresh and with zing,

and as the hearts swell , a sight to behold

Purple, red, orange and then gifts me gold.

---

 

Sindu Rajasekar

 

My Empire , Everyday I bloom And gloom ,to reach your eyes Your smile makes me fly to high of the sky You're my Sun I revolve around you Never mind day or night Whenever I feel I wanna hug you tight Days of fight Where your sight Never cross me and i might fall sick.. My love is thick..don't dilute it.. Maturity kicks the child inside me Just to feel you as a father Your act made may scars for me In heart it's flaming like fire My eyes never allowed me to shower the same It's all in the game... Never failed to suprise you On return you Never surprised and I failed World of words And ship of tears Still floating

And here the same me Writing a poem for you All I need is not your name or fame Just your love and lovely words of care You're my part And I'll never leave you apart..

---

 

Frances Heaton

 

Lazing by the beech, we pine we're getting alder.

But your beautiful hazel eyes can still make me smoulder.

All spruce up, best suit and tie, yew still bamboozle me

Though you're the elder, you're strong as an oak tree.

We're a funny pear, you so poplar and strong

While plane old me lovingly tags along.

---

 

Joe Smith

 

My dearest love, you're a breath of fresh air

Like a tree in a forest, you bring beauty everywhere

With a trunk so strong you reach into the sky,

Your branches provide shelter to the lovers who wander by.

 

Our roots run deep, strong and true

And I'm glad I can spend my life with you

Just like a tree that weathers every storm

Together we'll weather life's challenges and stay safe from harm.

 

So on this tree-mendous Valentine's Day,

Know I'll always be here for you, come what may

Together we'll grow, in the rays of the sun,

Just like an endless forest, our love will go on.

---

 

Michelle Louise

 

Alone on Valentine's Day some would despair

However I use it as a day for self care,

A day all for me to do what I please

No soppy card is a guarantee.

Instead it's a pamper day just for me

A meal cooked oh so perfectly!

I laugh and sing and do my own thing

No awkward moments that make you cringe

C'mon singles, take the plunge,

Get in the spirit and self- indulge!

---

 

‘Valentine’

Cherie Glover

 

A wonderful gift of joy you bring..

Your presence , your love, your cherishing

Empowers me with feelings so strong..

Of sweetness, beauty, much as a birdsong

My heart embraces all that you are..

My wondrous valentine - my vibrant star

Such flutters, excitement, a warmth within..

Forever, together from here on in!!

---

 

Daniel Boland

 

Roses are red, violets are blue,

I'm so glad I found someone like you.

You make me smile, you make me laugh,

With you by my side, life's a breeze and a half!

 

So here's a big hug and a kiss on the cheek,

To the one who makes my heart skip a beat.

Happy Valentine's Day to the love of my life,

You're my sunshine on a cloudy day, my reason and my strife!

---

 

IN A MOMENT

Lorraine Wade

 

It could have been a glance or just a chance.

A moment in time for a long slow dance.

I saw your smile on your face an knew I didn't stand a chance.

My heart was capture in that moment a hope for romance.

As you walk threw the crowd to make it too your table.

This is my chance I'm willing and able.

With all the courage and hope I walk toward you.

Not knowing how you will react, or even if I can reach you.

So I open my mouth hoping this moment will last a life time.

To say could you, would you be my valentine.

---

 

Andrea Goodheart

 

You grew on me

Like moss on a stone

Or a leaf on a twig

 

We grew together

Like tributaries of a river

Or hair styled into a plait

 

Now we grow old

Two as one

Until death do us part

---

 

Clinton Siegle

 

Tree love.. acrostic

Tree valentine's day in love with a tree.

Reality, we all breathe more from oxygen from the ocean.

Eternity, however, remembers the tree in love with me.

Evergreen tree in love with thee.

A beautiful tree for valentine's day.

Love to make you breathe.

Oxygen to make you see and breathe.

Valentine's day love I am in love with thee, and trees.

Evergreen trees to make you breathe in love.

---

 

Amy Dacre

 

I love you, I love you, I love you, so mighty.

I wish your pyjamas were next to my nightie.

Don't be mistaken don't be misled,

I mean on the washing line and not in bed.

---

 

Nadine Carruthers

 

I wouldn't be able to leaf my door, without the constance and positive vines of and my dearest Debbie always reaching out when i need it the most and filling my water bottle up when i'm a husk, she's blooming lovely! 🤣

---

 

Victor Kerekes

 

It gives me pause

To think about

My lovely, darling wife.

 

From way outside my field of view,

She dropped into my life.

 

And ever since, the world has changed.

 

For, much to my surprise,

The sweetest thing I ever saw

Was looking through those eyes…

 

This strange mysterious creature

(The likes of which was new)

 

Had quickly ripped my heart out

And slain me, through and through.

 

Beyond that guileless candor

Lay a simple depth so wise,

My gaze could only marvel

At the life behind those eyes!

 

Her life, which didn't come from here,

Reminds me that my heart

Just doesn't fit here, either,

And comes from other parts.

 

She smells like home,

And makes me long

For things beyond my ken;

 

For memories that I should have,

But can't remember when.

 

The closest thing to heaven, then,

To ever touch my life,

 

At first glance, is a child,

And lives within my wife.

---

 

 A lucky shot.

Richard J Parry

 

In my walk amongst the trees

And feeling completely at my ease

I suddenly felt with some alarm

A feathered arrow pierce my arm.

This I thought was rather stupid

In fact I had been shot by Cupid.

Why he picked me I can’t say

Perhaps it was a ricochet..

Then before me stood a girl.

Who set my senses in a whirl.

Whether by accident or design

I had found my Valentine.

---

 

Mitchel Murphy

 

In the beginning

God pulled threads of light from the sun and wove his body beautiful.

Painted him with the pink, red and white hues of morning time and called him mine.

 

Placed oceans in his eyes and watched me drift away.

 

Carved his face like clay

Finished with a flint in his throat and he spoke...

Happy Valentines day.

---

 

Melanie Rice

 

The love. That feeling.

Her heart so volatile, filled with the purest, deepest love spiked with terror.

She loved him so wholly, so deeply that the smile, which was so unusual for her troubled soul, was now with her in every moment of her being.

---

 

Carol Oldham

 

They say that trees grow close, but stop before their branches touch.

If I were a tree I would furl my leaves around you,

Caress you in a green embrace,

Apple-fresh and verdant

And in Spring when at last you blossomed, haloed by a cloud of bees

Our love would taste of sweet pollen and honey.

---

 

Valentine fruit cake- lovers

Precious Makazha

 

Romantically, my boyfriend and I

Are, nicknamed valentine fruit-cake

Lovers, for our romance is hidden in

a, red iced heart, shaped valentine fruit

Cake

Surprisingly on valentines morning

My boyfriend arrived with, the red

Iced fruit cake he then sliced a pierce

Of the, fruit cake and he gave it to

Me to nibble

 

I then realized, that the way he

Makes, love and caresses me was

Hidden in the red iced valentine fruit

Cake, amusingly, we both burst into

Romantic, laughter as valentine fruit -cake

Lovers.

---

 

Unromantic Ballad

Richard Argent

 

I cannot stand a love song

None of them ring true

Flowers are a waste of space

I've seen roses that are blue

Yes, jewellery's an investment

Sparkling like morning dew

If only I could choose a style

That would make you happy too

Cards are bleedin' awful

The verses make you spew

Wish Valentines weren't created

Let's just have another brew

I found a smile that day

When you said, 'I do'

And though I'm an unromantic git

I'll do anything for you

---

 

My D.I.Y. Valentine

Mary Hodges

 

I put you on a pedestal

Or rather up a ladder

My Valentine, my Handy Man,

I couldn't have been gladder.

But as the years come and go

Although you're still appealing

I wish you'd get your finger out

And finish off the ceiling.

 

The plaster's old (like us) and cracked

The paint had started peeling

And now you've put the coving up

You say it still needs sealing.

You'll have to fill in all the cracks

Apply two coats of paint

An undercoat and overcoat

The chance is getting faint

That you'll be done by Easter

Or Christmas twenty-five

But could you try to get it done

While we are both alive!

---

 

Blair Hamelink

 

February night

flames blush

faces red

you & I: we, the lambs of love

our blood we sacrificed

for mosquitoes

bloated bellies

roused in constellations

above our lecherous bed

tuning our flamenco strings

strung face-to-face muse-to-muse

with blank voice

anticipating el duende

& surrendering to a hemlock cocktail

the Demon's Rum

angelic on the tongue

angelic down the throat

stirring the conflicted

knots in our being

cause & effect

dissecting our bowels

supined in a

dark silence

the gnostic

burden our lips

our fingers intertwine

& we purr our mantra

"with duende it is easier to love"

the burning coal (Lorca's voice)

reminds us that

"the duende won't appear

if it can't see

the possibility of death"

& in her sweet gypsy ballad

I hear dark notes

of a lover's lament

the cloaked Saint Valentine

or is it

the raw-throated

spirit of

a saddened Spain

laid bare

---

 

djane

 

My love for you is like a rose

It blooms with beauty, dignity and poise

And each day it grows and grows

Bringing me more joy and hope with every sunrise

Your beauty is like a river's flow

Your grace carries me through my day Your heart is so full of love and so

That I'm in awe of all that you have to say

Your kindness and your empathy

Your wisdom and your understanding too Are some of the many things I see

That make me so grateful to have you

When I take your hand in mine

I feel like I have the world in my grip And I know we'll have such a fine Life together, no matter the trip.

---

 

Perfect Pairs

Jenny Drury

 

Perfect pairs are meant to be -

Like Newton and his apple tree,

The partridge partnered with the pear,

Rogers dancing with Astaire,

Robin Hood, the Major Oak,

Cool Bacardi mixed with coke.

 

If you're not here I can't be whole -

I'm just a body with no soul.

Picture Morecambe without Wise,

Lonely Big Macs without fries.

Who is Cagney without Lacey?

Gavin's nothing without Stacey.

 

Without you two two's make three -

You're the missing one for me!

---

 

Jay Fullham

 

Just around the corner sprawls a sea

Of sable soot and urban fabric strewn

All that was is all that will ever be

Its breath recovers through the browning leaves

An empty space for it to wander through

Just around the corner sprawls a sea

A foam on the pavement runs free

Trodden into tomorrow on a shoe

All that was is all that will ever be

These towers house a community

Tomorrow promises allies new

Just around the corner sprawls a sea

The underground tunnels filled with steam

Gas-lit carriages with a murky hue

All that was is all that will ever be

The wave of the future children seems

To rely on our present view

Just around the corner sprawls a sea

All that was is all that will ever be

---

 

Self love this valentines

Natalie Watkins

 

Roses are red,

And violets are blue,

You must love yourself first, before others can love you,

With Valentine’s Day upon us it got me thinking what true love really means to me,

The art of self love is really where true love starts to be.

---

 

Monica Reilly

 

For Valentines when I was small

Teachers had us make them for all

As Love, this quality we adore

is not just for who we've a fond rapport

 

As a young adult I had a few beaus

My heart on my sleeve, I'd hand him a rose

Uncomfortably, as always a thorn

Gave rise to blood where skin had torn

 

In marriage, supposed love of my life

Strove for peace amid the strife

I missed him though when he was gone

Leaving me bereft, forlorn

 

My Love for my children knows no bounds

Inside of me my heart resounds

My babies had babies, for they are grown

Leaving me living on my own

 

I never before lived just with me

I learned to love and let myself be

It's rather odd but it feels fine

Finally I'm my own Valentine

---

 

A love poem

Marta Mazurek

 

I have known this is love since the day we met.

 

How could I leave you or simply forget?

 

You are the light shining through day,

 

You make the sky stop being grey.

 

Whatever bad happened,

 

That's just between us,

 

But nothing will ever pull us apart.

 

The love is real,

 

The purest love.

 

Whether I am right here or I am above.

---

 

MY HOLIDAY VALENTINO

Gail MacPherson

 

'Paradise' was 'our' song

and we've certainly been there…

Our holidays together

Are treasured memories that we share

 

Like when…

 

I got the amazing news

That I'd won our very first cruise

And I launched a cappuccino

Over my white chinos in Portofino

 

Then there was love, happiness and joy

And memories to make my heart sing

When you came to my family wedding

In the gorgeous Kalithea Springs

 

I wonder what excitement 2023 will bring…

 

You can be my Romeo

When we get to San Antonio

…Or maybe things'll get steamy

after a martini, in my bikini in Santorini!

 

Or in Athens I'll be your Athena

We could seek out ancient ruins or a tower

But I'd much rather drag you round gardens

To look at olive trees and flowers!

---

 

Valentine's Day Thoughts for my Wife that I Ain't Yet Met

Jordan Brennan

 

You are the baseball bat down my bedside;

You're them iron railings at the seaside;

 

You're the cascade of tickets of an arcade win;

You're a perfect uppercut flush on the chin.

 

You're that red in the chest of a Robin;

You're that fella from Flubber- I forget his name. It might have Rob in.

 

You're my quick wit, sleaze, temper and charm;

You're the bliss of sleep without an alarm.

 

You're the glide of a brand new ballpoint pen;

You're Millwall away: the furore of the Den.

 

You're that new slang that I've been trying out;

You're things said with meaning: without a doubt.

 

You're that picture of Bobby Moore with the Jules Rimet;

You're the shift of the seasons between June and May.

 

You are the sunset in Ibiza,

The last slice of pizza,

When Leonardo completes a Mona Lisa;

That. Is what you are to me.

---

 

Georjy Pantelli

 

If hearts could speak it would say to thee,

let me count the ways I love my HRT

 

You told me nothing,

I believed everything,

I now experience nights with no sweating

 

In that moment,

I found true love,

you've helped me even rise above

 

And I love the little things you do for me…

 

My happy feeling,

my mental healing,

no restless legs,

no sweaty beds,

no itchy arms, you're my lucky charm

no explosion of emotions,

no more tears that fill the oceans

 

And that magic in your touch,

It is for all these reasons and more,

why I love my HRT so much

---