Hakim. The Gatekeeper from Esagila.

 

(A lone voice whispers)

In ancient Babylon,

I once stood alone and mixed fire
Iron and clay

All day

Creating a spell
To entice my only light to come my way

Sent merchandise of gold and silver

To her,
The Pythoness of Endor
Hidden in dark woods

Over the deepest of rivers

Bundles of finest fresh linens and purple silk

To satisfy her and her ilk

Citron wood and every kind of object
I could ever find

Made of white ivory and black marble

Whenever I could
No matter the expense

Incense sticks
And scented Egyptian
Candlesticks

Made of expensive Frankincense

Delicious crates of red wine

Bamboo baskets filled with white flour and yellow wheat

Fields of fat cattle and herds of baying sheep

Priceless trained horses and golden inlaid chariots

New slaves of broken souls

Lascivious ladies and ravenous men
To do her bidding

Even acts of depravity
Linked to the forbidden

For the fruit of my soul
And to be joined to her again

A bright light
I once saw

On a seemingly endless night

But in the year 323
When my leader
Alexander the Great

At only 32
Died and was eternally set free

In the opulent palace of Nebuchadnezzar

She

The Lady of the Wild Woods
The Pythoness of Endor

Cursed me to chase her
Forever

The Queen
I once conjured by fire
Iron and clay

So today
In the 21st century
Her, I still chase

Since eternal life
Is now my only penitentiary

My only great living version
Of Babylon of Old

When I desired to sire
A queen, I once met

Dancing
The Raqs Sharqi

So fiercely
That her raw beauty
I can never forget

Adorned in soft crimson and glittering purple linen

Clad in silver

Wearing gold and shining diamond stone earrings

Reborn into the likes of
Badiaa Masabni

It's why I still chase her
If I could confess

For underneath

Beneath all things linked to trying to achieve immortal strength

It's why now
To seek her out
Once more

I always choose to break free

From the external grip
Of The Valley of Death

(C)
Copyright John Duffy

Image courtesy of Pinterest.

Babylon

 

 (A lone voice whispers)

I once heard a wild story of a rebellious seductive woman

Hailing

From somewhere dark

Down West Side

East Washington DC

Lost somewhere

In the middle of a seemingly never-ending night

While drinking expensive whiskey

After I landed from leaving my old life behind 

In Corpus Christi 

Wondering 

As I drowned my sorrows 

If my old love from Russia

Katalina Brzezinski

Would ever miss me

You know the ones

Those good old loose Mephistophelian nights

A story about a woman 

I heard

Who whispers so softly

It said

So captivatingly 

With magical words

If she only spoke your name

But once

No matter what you're drinkin'

No matter what you're thinkin'

What you’re wearing

Man or woman 

At the end of that long 

Good old 

Dark 

Seemingly endless Mephistophelian night

No matter how hard you

Fight

How hard

You look for her shadow

Over your shoulders

Left or right

After she's gone 

If she only speaks your name

No matter what pain

You’re going through

At the time of your naming

You’ll just be another poor

Tainted soul

She’s just done with claiming

I once heard of a New Age mystic

Now know it was her

When I was younger

In my prime

And drinking red wine

Lost in Downtown 

Memphis, Tennessee 

Lost somewhere 

Whilst talking to one of her devotees

Called Louie

In a backyard club

Filled with flashing strobe lights 

As The Eagles played live

Their mythical 

Hotel California 

In the middle of that night

That good old apocalyptic Mephistophelian night

He talked of a dark-eyed Bayou goddess 

Of who I should beware of these parts

A woman 

So beautiful beyond all compare

Who whispers so softly

So captivatingly and seductively 

To all who dare stare

And if she only speaks your 

God-given secretive name

But once

No matter what you're drinkin'

No matter what you're thinkin'

At the end of that dark seemingly endless voyeuristic night

It’ll be your soul

She’ll be wearing as a new fur coat

Before 

Riding out onto

The Great Cosmic Plains

In her Ford Mustang GT

As her Pale White Horse

For she heralds the dangerous Age of Cataclysm's

And when I was told

That unholy truth

Oh why didn't I learn

For her sweetly spoken words to me

Now heralds a bringer of a new dawn

Of divine encounters

The furious fire and the crazy fury before 

The Great Sensuous Cleansing

A new Genesis for the Flesh

Before True Peace and Love can return

I once spoke beer brave

To that wild rebellious woman

Sitting with the aura of a blazing midday sun

In the corner of an empty bar

Smiling like a snake charmer 

In Down West

East Washington DC

As she drew me towards her

Then whispered so softly

So captivatingly 

And spoke my spirit name

Making me feel like I was drowning

Swirling 

Lost 

In her soul's ever-expanding universe's bright lights 

And these are my last words

That I'll ever type

As I now patiently wait

Like Louie

Another of many new slaves of her New Age

For her rhythmic 

Two one Two knock 

On my front door

For after she said my God-given secretive name 

That night 

Outside Bar 32

As we French kissed in the falling rain

And all I can now do 

Is wait in vain 

For my poor soul has been well and truly claimed

By Babylon

And my soul purging and grand cleansing

Has just begun

My own version of a new Genesis

Now I'm alone 

But patiently waiting 

Hiding 

But just staring out

In the long shadows

Watching for my dark-eyed Goddess 

Called Babylon to arrive

 As the morning sun rises

(C)

Copyright John Duffy

Image shared from Pinterest under fair usage policy 

    

Dianna the Moon Queen

 

Foundation

Are we being watched by unseen supernatural beings?

Some say any reflective surfaces, like mirrors and water, are but conduits.

Viewing stations used throughout history in any nation

Title
Dianna the Moon Queen

(A regal female voice whispers)

Take this,
These softly spoken words

As the sacred keys to open my Tower of Regeneration
And as my high moon sets

Call to me with all your divine power
From any nation

And I'll help you conquer your own abyss

 
With a full life and a real love

Guided by my light
At your side
To open your heart wide

Replenished by the warmth of my belief,
One of my greatest spiritual gifts

For if you don't look for me
My energy, and moonlight, you will always miss

As you look back at me

One lonely night

And reminisce while going through the five stages of grief

Of what could have been
With me

The secret watcher
Hidden
In The Great In-Between

(C)
Copyright John Duffy

Image shared under fair usage policy

The Princess and the Butler

 Foundation.

Does sending handwritten love letters still exist in the 21st Century?

Have you ever sent one?

Title 

The Princess and the Butler

(The great portal opens. A handwritten love letter to a forbidden lover)

My love

You are the coveted cascade of life-giving emotions

Within this old life’s frosty abandoned dreams

The raw power to melt

the icy cold embracing my very soul 

Holding me prisoner 

In my many underground streams

All the passing seasons’ love songs 

Just reminds me of that first soft eternal kiss

Of exquisite red lips

I once tasted so long ago

In the stables

And still truly miss

The warm sun echoes of our secret return 

To be together 

As long as the stables candles burns

That thought alone sends a sweet symphony

Into Heavens silvery mists

A divine melody of unchained excitement

Filled with lyrics of a pain-free existence and untamed spirits

Merged and infused with magic at its deep centre

Its own Danse du Ventre and from the opened mouths 

Of ethereal silhouettes

Swirling all around me

As I think of you and your beautiful four horses

I always hear your soul — deep calls

Asking me to appear and hold you before this fragile bridge we walk upon

Falls 

And as I appear as the slippery dark shadows advance

In my dreams 

I always stand in awe and watch 

As you perform your sensuous sword dance

My Goddess

My Queen

My mystical lover and soulmate from The Great In-Between

So if you find this

Your grace,

Reply and put your letter in our usual hiding place

Xxx

(C)

Copyright John Duffy 

Image shared under fair usage policy 

    

Lucy

 

Foundation of the piece.

Mother's play such an integral, important part of a child's early life. And expands into everything else.

If you're lucky.

This piece is just a simple representation of that lasting legacy.

Did your mother leave a secret room in your heart, where she still lives?

Title:
Lucy

I once held tightly
With small arms

A white candle that burnt with the heavenly perfume, of total joy

Loved reigniting and embracing its light whenever she called around

My mother
Lucy

To my bedroom to tell me such remarkable childhood stories
Hold my hand

When I was her little boy

When Love burnt so bright,
and that flame, seemed to last throughout

Every long scary night

But now that heavenly flame, no longer burns

For to Heaven's Great Gates,
She has returned

So here I am
In Saint Paul's

Lighting a votive candle
This Sunday

As I enter its four alabaster walls

For even though my white candle has gone out

And the long nights
Seem so much more darker

Our deep love forever takes a more profound meaning

Whenever I see her beautiful face

In our favourite silver, Elsa Peretti, picture frame

We picked together last May

On the twenty-first
At Tiffany & Co

When my wife and I covered her,
In our pink and blue wedding confetti

The first lady to love me when God sent me
To go

Face the trials and tribulations

That comes with living on the earthly plane

And now that deep love resonates and vibrates into oblivion

For even though she had to depart
She now lives forever in a secret room

In the centre of our beating hearts

Proudly smiling and watching

Me and my Kelley

As our love for us
And her

Like an eternal white rose

Too blooms and shines like a light from a familiar candle

I once held tightly
With small arms

A white candle that burnt with the heavenly perfume,

Of total joy
When I was her little boy

(C)
Copyright John Duffy

Image shared under fair usage policy

Consilium from The Outlier

(A lone voice whispers)

Have you ever encountered painful heartbreak, or are enduring, soul-destroying grief 

And sometimes sit alone in the silence

Praying for any form of spiritual relief 

If so, here are a few thoughts from a similar person, who's been through it all 

No matter what you feel or happens today

A new dawn will still always rise again, tomorrow

A chance to knock down, any hastily built, mental walls

A chance to find a new form of freedom, to flourish

To subdue, all those painful feelings highlighted with sorrow 

That no longer, nourishes 

Some may say, you've just got to forget the past

Use reconciliation, beyond reason to last

But I say, do it this way

Love those even more so, who've passed away 

And never again, believe in those 

Who once broke, your unswaying three pillars of trust 

By charging in like the doomed, British Light Brigade 

With all the sad games, they once played 

Leaving you standing alone

On parade,

For all to see

In depressions black dust

(C)

Copyright John Duffy 

Counseling comes from the Latin root consilium, meaning “advice.”

Foundation.

Relationships 

Can you ever trust a person after being betrayed on any level?

Grief

Does time really heal, and do you want to forget someone special, you once loved?

Good night

 

An intriguing thought to carry into next week.

Salute.

The Prophet Of Dumaz Speaks

(A lone voice whispers)

Hey you
You do realize
You picked this life

Before you were born

All the people you've met
Loved
Hated

Family
Friends
Lovers
Situations

Hardships
Encountered
In whatever nation

When you signed your soul's timeline
Up high

Somewhere
In the Deep Divine

It may be a strange thing
Knowing this

But consoling
All the same
In a bizarre way

Souls
Some say

Need to face
Trials and tribulations
To soar higher

To be refined

So maybe
What you're presently
Going through

Is a journey of love or pain
You

Yes
You

Have already planned
To go through
Again

So view challenges
In a new way

Don't be daunted
Scared or swayed

Face them with courage
And fortitude

For to not do so
This time around
Would be rude

Or you could just crumble
And turn to dust

Only to ask
For the same experience
Again

With your soul
Entombed in a new husk

So trust your instincts
And I hope and pray

This got you thinking
That all you're enduring
You've asked for

Even knowing me
Via this poetic review
To remind you

Keep going
You still have
So much to do

(C)
Copyright John Duffy

Escapism – For the readers.

 

(A lone voice whispers)

Hey you,

Reading this
From way beyond the reach

Of the Great Abyss

I, Thomas, have a question or two

Would you blindly follow me if I lit a red candle

In this final odyssey home

To be rescued
And finally bare your soul

Together with mine
And all you can handle

Before the Sacred Salt Pillar of Ado

Of Sodom and Gomorrah
Near the Dead Sea and atone

Would you follow me and that maybe life-changing suggestion

Willingly into this swirling dark

And grasp my coattails within this invocation and rhyme

As we trespass tentatively through all of this life's scary parks

Just you and me

To somewhere only the courageous can ever conceive

As we strip off all the world's detritus

That tries to smother us with all their rock slides

And swim against all societies fast-flowing dividing tides

Will you dare tango and tiptoe past the ever watchful Tall Man and all his worldly Minions

As we circumnavigate the spiritual globe

To truly see the new world grid and reclaim our own freedom

To sit beside our newly created Holy River
To write poetry and sing

To joyously watch through that river's undulating scrying mirror

As the real world slowly disappears

To then walk through a portal which I know will appear

Through all the luscious green grass to finally reach the portcullis gates to the

Eternal City
Of Tartaria

To hear the greatest stories ever told to human ears
In any era

To finally embrace a new realm free from all restrictions

Laws or fears

For although we are but lost souls going eventually to try to conquer She'ol

Would you still just blindly follow me

For you also
Seek Escapism

For you too are a true reader

Past the awakening powers of an immoral old fallen god

A new age world leader
And all its political forces

To walk unashamed together
Hand in hand

To somewhere to renew
Hidden from view

Beyond this world,
Many new pale white horses

(C)
Copyright John Duffy

Image shared under fair usage policy

High Society

 High Society 

(A conversation between an elderly man in a nursing home, and his caring nurse)

I can still see her now

You know

Especially at night

Everywhere I look or go 

Eyes twinkling with a touch of salacious wild mischief 

Dressed in white

In this, my favourite picture

Look at her

Look at her with her bright brown eyes devouring each detail of my face

Look how her hand held my hand so gently like one of Love's legendary 

Heart Thieves 

Oh, she had such style

You should have seen us dance and laugh like Bing Crosby and Grace Kelly in High Society

But now as my heart grieves

What still lifts me to newer heights of acceptance is the thought 

That through these old pictures of us behaving with such impropriety

I'll always have something magical that will always connect us

Whenever I remember

My one and only love, who was once so 

Beautifully infectious

(C)

Copyright John Duffy 

Foundation.

Do photographs hold a more significant connection, when reviewed, when really required?

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The Sinners Redemption Prayer

 The Sinners Redemption Prayer

(A lone figure, kneels and prays. Watched by his faithful cat, Rudolph)

I was born a sinner

Lord

For all us triers are

Blindly sent to live by You

An unknown higher power

To try to defeat the Devil's temptations and sin

But now at 75 and slowly dying

It's no use crying 

Wishing I had done better

I've sinned all my life to live

Sinned 

Staying out late looking for another with whom to live

Drank anything to get my soul wetter with all I could give

Gambled

Loved and lied

Been cheated on and cried

As inside I died

Cleaning up everything that was on my plate

So Lord it's now too late, and I know Saint Peter won't open your gates

But you know what

I still feel pride

About how I lived

So going to your purgatory with these feelings and sins

I'm sure I'll find other lost souls like me to continue the party

Because they'll be able to relate 

For now, to change

As my end approaches 

I still haven't got what it takes to be loyal

Since my Martha left me

After

For the millionth time, 

I stayed out

Drinking and playing cards with the Gecko brothers 

 

Watching strippers at the Titty Twister 

Too late

Please forgive me Lord 

Amen

(C)

Copyright John Duffy 

Foundation.

At the end, what would your last prayer be?

Did you live a good life or like the man above, give in to the Devils seductive powers?

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