I wish I had spent more

Time with them.

That’s what people say

When they are gone.

But whilst they are still here,

For one reason or another

It’s too difficult.

One day

I will probably say

I wish I had spent more

Time with them.

The wine flowed from the bottle  

as the words flowed from my pen.

It was my best ever.  

A match for the greats:  

Kipling, Thomas and Henley.

And one that my favourite, Bukowski

Would be happy to say

You matched me today.

I celebrated my masterpiece

With another glass of wine

Before going to bed, joyous

With the feeling I had created

My Magnum Opus.

In the morning I rose,

Clear headed and happy with

The memory of my creation.

I read it again.

It sounded different.  

This was not the splendid verse I recalled.

It was the ramblings of a drunken mind

Bukowski would say

Try again Man

This is a pile of crap.

Suddenly, I had a hangover.

I thought it was

You and me

Against the world

But life changed us

And

The world changed

And

Now it’s just

Me

Against the world

I have already written my magnum opus

Attempts to better it, seem to be hopeless

As I struggle to create an anthology

Perhaps it comes down to Psychology

When I heard you were dead
I was sorry
Sorry for your wasted life

I’d see you in your regular haunts
An inconvenient problem
For the world to ignore

Asking, ‘Can you spare some change?’
Change for drink and drugs
Or change the world?

Perhaps if I knew your story
I would understand
Perhaps not

Life is filled with joys and sorrows

But some joys are expensive

They come at the highest price

I am in the valley of despair

My ship is sinking

The Gods mock me

My dreams are dying

Even my imaginary friends hate me