Three Sublime Poems by John Drudge

 

A Quiet Revolution

 

To see

What we see

Through sensation

Something colourful

And powerful

Below

A deep understanding

Of ourselves

Rejecting everything

And accepting nothing

A revolution of heart

A rebellion of will

Radical

And challenging

Overturning the past

Like snow

Dropping from trees

As the sun warms

Coming to Our Senses

 

Sailing

Against the currents

Of our time

Across too many

Saddened tomorrows

Through the cruelty

Of nature

Snarled by sentiment

And the buzz saw

Of moments

Falling

Into the organized violence

Of a long life

Milestones

Quieted by loss

And the need to become

Something more

Measuring strength

By sad instants

And steadying

Triumphs

With insufficient knowledge

Whispering

Through the winds

Of our growth

From diligent suffering

To wisdom

In the willowy displacement

Of self

And the sound

Of our senses

Straining

 

Self-Portrait

 

In the value

Of a moment

An unfortunate

Destiny

Opens up

Before me

Absorbed

In the reflection

Of night

Directly

Into the heart

Of things

A community of scorn

Undone

By the essence

Of who I am

Something from nothing

In the aftermath

Of fate

John Drudge is a social worker working in the field of disability management and holds degrees in social work, rehabilitation services, and psychology.  He is the author of four books of poetry: “March” (2019), “The Seasons of Us” (2019), New Days (2020), and Fragments (2021). His work has appeared widely in numerous literary journals, magazines, and anthologies internationally. John is also a Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net nominee and lives in Caledon Ontario, Canada with his wife and two children.