Fairer Winds Blowing - A poem of better times that came at last

After the long cold,
true warmth enters my life
giving me hope of better days
as the winds of fate
shift to fairer directions.

I've done my time
of being a homeless bum
and won't need to hold signs
this winter for hot coffee
as a job came.

And that started avalanche
of change in those winds,
as they kicked me from duldrums
back onto the trade lanes
where things look hopeful.

A short story sold.
A poetry e-book almost ready
to offer for sale real soon,
and that was the flap
of Fate's butterfly wings.

Now, I steer careful.
Have the stars showing clearly
where I am, where I'm going,
and just have to remember
where I once was.

This ends one chapter
in the tale I'm living.
The one that tore me up,
beat me down to earth,
then lifted me up.

There are friends waiting,
ones still needing that hand,
like I once did, during this.
Folks I need to thank
when I get chance.

Including my readers here.
For lifting my spirits up,
for keeping my passions burning bright,
and most of all believing
in a homeless bum.

I'm free of it,
others are not, so remember
when you pass some worn panhandler,
this poet has been there,
and asks most kindly
that you not
ignore them,
insult them,
but give them hope.

Like you did me.
17August2014 - Dyfedd Rex, Riding some good waves and winds, headed.... to a home.

Ideas for the Giving Season - A Poem of Homelessness and Charity

This is not me begging, but ideas from a real street person as to what might be better, for those leary of giving cash. Which I fully understand. Seen too many packs, jackets and shoes being sold for cash, drugs or a swig from a bottle right after the gift was given myself. You still won't stop it all the way, but these are also things often traded for among us. 

We call it "The Giving Season",
just as you homed folks do.
For us, it starts about now
or a few weeks back really.
Labor Day seems to spark urges
among folks who see us wandering
under heavy loads along these streets.
Don't know what moves their hearts
to open up wallets and bags
holding out things to we Homeless.

The knowledge that Winter is coming
with his nasty snows and cold?
Or that crisp morning's chilly air
that made you start looking quick
for the windshield scraper and rakes?
That blaze of turning tree leaves
whose color highlights our dingy clothes?
I really don't care reasons why,
I just want to thank you
even if those receiving seem rude.

Not all want to give cash,
and I don't blame them any.
Seen too many fellow panhandlers slither
over to dealers next corner over
and waste it all at once
seeking their next, perhaps last, high.
So, after thinking it over carefully
I have some suggestions to offer
as an actual Homeless wise man
for you to consider as alternates.

You don't need much to try
offering these to those holding kites,
as we call our cardboard signs.
Single packs of instant coffee work,
as do hot chocolate and kool-aids.
You can get cheap liner gloves
over at your local dollar stores
And socks, never forget we walk
long distances in the bitter cold
wearing those too long until destroyed.

Gift cards are a great idea
just choose their source with Wisdom.
While Starbucks might seem your choice,
you get more cups per fiver
over at McD's or Seven Eleven.
And if you choose food gifts,
as an allergy sufferer I plead
have choices to avoid reactions ready
on those most common, deadly allergens
like nuts, tuna, berries and soy.

Believe it or not, even trash-bags
can be very well accepted items,
on those rainy or snowy days.
Batteries keep us just like you,
as we have little electronic devices
to help us keep spirits up,
be it radios, gaming toys, flashlights,
or for a few, digital cameras.
See, you can find easy things
that let you give during this season.

Not saying it won't go wrong
in some cases despite avoiding cash.
Face it, barter is our economy
with cigarettes, instant coffee and tokens
be it bus, laundry or some other,
as our hottest and desired commodities.
And, yes, some will trade foolishly
giving up needed gloves for drugs,
but that choice they will make
has its own long-term costs attached.

If you decide charities are better,
please, research that organization very well,
and don't be afraid to ask
one of us for which seems
to have their brains in gear
about getting things to end users
in timely and efficient ways recently.
Also watch for fake organizations springing
up to sucker your dollars away
from where the need really is.

I'm not telling you to give.
That decision is your's to make.
Those as have the heart will,
those as don't, well, they won't.
And no matter how much spent
it won't end the homeless problem.
But you will make some better,
and give their spirits a lift.
And your own, probably, as well.
After all, it's the season's name...
...and what life is really about.

17SeptemberDyfedd Rex

War of Lag-trition - A poem of Gaming

I have a guilty sin,
yeah, I play video games.
And on I enjoy best
has me cussing constantly
as I die a lot now
from ugly lag spike hits.

My war of "Lag-trition"
comes at moments proving key
to the way the battle
flows and ebbs about me fast,
when that damned screen pops up
"Reconnecting to server", I sigh.

So if you play that game,
League of Legends, it is called,
have mercy on that Karma
who stands there dying often,
or runs back to our base,
It ain't all my fault these days.

Library wi-fi sucks,
with interruptions killing
my connection often,
as part of the war they wage
on the movie downloads
always clogging their system.

I die by "Lag-trition"
enforced absence foisted off
onto my game by chance
not my own intentions.
Not trying a feeder
to be, just seeking a win....
.. to get me some safe I.P.

11September2013 - Dyfedd Rex

The grey skies arrived.
Sneaking in overnight,
cloaking the stars above
from our upward gazes
to adore Heaven's Vault.

Wet and cooler air,
aleady I see the hints
of color on the over east,
where Fall's first touch
lays out colorful dots.

Campsite was trashed
and where it wasn't,
the herd staked claims
on the little coves
where I prefer sleeping.

Cleaned what I could,
left the rest for Nature
to scrub away this week
with expected rains
these clouds promise.

This is the warning:
find a safe haven folks.
As Winter starts stretching
for his cold marathon
across us pretty soon.

Ain't where I wanted
this old boy to be
back in the spring.
No built up place,
no home in offing.

But, I enjoy cold,
as long as toes
ain't freezing until dead
or nose running constantly
to keep the pipes clear.

Third season of snows
I will spend homeless,
less the world relents
and Fate convinces Karma
I've paid for my sins.

So, when you pass by
some person holding sign
on a cold, windswept corner,
remember, it could be you
or a loved one there...

...for you're only a mistake away,
even if you don't admit it.

10September2013 - Dyfedd Rex