The Poetry of John Grey

Literary Revelations presents the poetry of John Grey. I hope you enjoy it.

BIO

John Grey is an Australian poet, US resident, recently published in New World Writing, North Dakota Quarterly and Lost Pilots. Latest books, ”Between Two Fires”, “Covert” and “Memory Outside The Head” are available through Amazon. Work upcoming in California Quarterly, Birmingham Arts Journal, La Presa and Shot Glass Journal.

AUTHENTIC NEW JERSEY

The boardwalk creaks underfoot,
as I pass by a shuttered restaurant
whose peeling paint still advertises “fresh seafood.”

The ocean smells of salt and taffy.
and the souvenir shop still hawks New Jersey fare
to the occasional tourist.

The lights mostly work
so human moths are attracted to the brightness after dark:
gangs of teenage boys, deprived of vandalism
because everything’s wrecked already,
laughing, lip-sticked girls, checking out the hot guys
drawing bravado from the group.

I settle for an “authentic” hot-dog,
walk the narrow beach for aways,
listen to dark ocean’s repetition.

The dog’s overcooked and the bun is stale.
It lives up to its billing.

STONE FENCE

For years,
the old stone fence
has defended itself
against the free-flow
of weeds.
It has held up
through snow and tornado
rain and harsh sun.

Civilization built the fence,
moved on
and, since then,
it has fended for itself
in ways that
the old house, the barn,
and the tilled fields could not.

And when the surrounds
succumbed to how life was
before farmers,
it toughened up as best it could,
a mute monument
to the men and women
who once harvested this land.

It’s a shrine these days
but it sees itself as a pledge.

For those of you who did not read our post “Petals of Haiku Enters Immortality – The book together with Hikari’s painting of the cover will be displayed in the Treasure House of the Rinsenji Temple, Japan” you can check it out HERE.