Another You
There’s a little coffee shop nestling
on the corner by the square
It takes me back to our place
And to the secrets that we shared

That was where we sat together
our knees touching in the dark
Trying so hard to concentrate
To ignore that smouldering spark

For just one hour once a week
you were mine to have and hold
We’d while away the hours
While our coffee it ran cold

We’d snuggle close by the window
Watching people go about their day
losing ourselves in each other
So much to do and say

I was mesmerised by your eyes
They way they penetrated deep into mine
Stirred in me a happiness
I didn’t know that I could find

My body shook with laughter
All the stories that you told
And the way you moved around me
And the way you eased my load

We’d talk about films and music
And how we felt deep in our heart
Afraid to stop talking
Afraid to start what we might start

Afraid to face the truth
That I face today
The cruel reality that soon
You would have to go away

That date looms hot and heavy
a circle on the wall
a cruel reminder that I never
really had you at all

Telling me one day you’d have
To turn away and leave
To leave our private comfort zone
Taunted by our grief

Now I drink my coffee black
With nothing on the side
No strength to keep holding back
All I kept inside

I can’t find another you
To while away my days
I can’t find another you
To say what I want to say

I can’t be the one
To call you on the phone
But I can’t get you out of my mind
And I don’t want to be alone

The couples they surround me
Laughter in their eyes
Cocooned in their perfect world
Untarnished by tears and lies

I wonder if they’re really in love
Or just strangers meeting halfway
It’s something we might talk about
If I ever find you some day

Until then I’ll journey alone
Until the day that I find you
And I’ll keep an eye on the door
And I’ll keep a seat for you
By Audrey Healy

Gloom
He came in the room
A mood hung round him like a mist
Damp, dismal.
It would seep through everything
She tried to disperse it.
“You look well,” she said
“The weather is picking up.
Lots of good news about
The economy and all that.”
When he left it went with him.

She sighed
A residue had remained.
By Carmel McCarthy

Urban Zen
There’s joy in repetition.
One stitch plain, one pearl
until I have something
that looks like a scarf.
It’s the same with swimming.
One length breast stroke
One length back stroke
Over and over until the bell.
I find comfort in the routine of it all.
I am completely in the moment.
Lost within it and totally at ease.
My urban zen.
By Katie

For my parents
Do you remember when I was four?
I never wanted to leave your side,
my siblings were fools if they thought
the grass was greener on the other side.

Now here I am at 28 going back on my word,
the thought of me growing up was absurd,
How could I live without seeing you every day,
missing your cooking and doing things your way.

Who is going to mind me when I get lonely or sad?
What if no one treats me as special as my Dad?
How do you cook a roast Sunday dinner,
or know when the smell means something is rotten?

How will I manage my money and savings,
or cope with the shame of a bill I’ve forgotten?
These are the things I will learn alone,
probably by using up credit on the phone

The rest I’ll just have to learn as I go,
you weren’t born a Mum that I now know
You had your insecurities just like me,
but you were always perfect to me you see.

I know there comes a time in every girl’s life,
to leave and become a mother and wife
I just didn’t figure it would be so soon,
I thought moving out I’d be over the moon.

I know my excitement is hard to be seen,
part of me still wants to be sixteen
I am looking forward to making my own way,
I’ve learned from the best growing up everyday.

I’m not going far but I’ll still miss you so,
I’ll be down every day until these feeling go,
But I don’t think they ever will, look how I grew!
I hope you are as proud of me as I am of you.

My partner will be patient I hope,
when nothing he does will compare with my folks,
And I hope that he waits while my broken heart mends,
to get used to leaving my best ever friends.
By J

September Sky
(written after visit to Ground Zero)

September Sky you look so sad
As you greet another day
Tortured by the memory
Of the hurt that came your way

They say your city stays alive
They say it never sleeps
But it seems to me as I watch you grieve
You’re a city that forever weeps

Rugged cross stands alone
A symbol of your grief
A futile last ditch attempt
To fuel your fading belief

Innocent and unaware
of what evils lay in store
Who could have known that losing you
Would make us love you even more

September Sky your tears are still
Falling in the rain
A collage of smiling faces
Lost to you in pain

Pictures solemnly placed side by side
Names carved on marble stone
Just your souls for company
But you did not die alone

September Sky don’t grieve for us
Don’t give into the pain
Learn to face another day
Learn to smile again

Think of us when the sun breaks through
Remember us with pride
Our hearts remain as one with yours
Too many tears have been cried
By Audrey Healy

Faith
Dear God, how are You today?
I guess You are always well
You control everything
You gave me free will, I’m told
No use asking anyone else
I’ve become cheekier
Less begging
A cheeky child
More demanding; insisting
You keep Your word
You have no need to answer
But I know You will
Not as expected
A surprise
Maybe a delight
It will come.
By Carmel McCarthy

As always, we welcome contributions to
The Poetry Place, which can be sent to the
‘NewsFour’ offices at 15 Fitzwilliam Street,
Ringsend, Dublin 4.