Help, direction needed
Come in, relax, join the conversation
It’s a question of intent
It is OK for us to say “I don’t know” alot.
Love is it.
It’s all about love
Living in the QUESTIONS
What questions would you ask?
Why not reach out to anyone.
Category: Poetry
Short poems and creative writing from my recovery journey.
Bonk by Jill Brame
I trudged back through the chortens,
in the with the horse bells
the rancid yack butter
Just content not to be in the Abyss
nor the Tiger, for that matter,
Meanwhile the mouse at the strawberries.
The poem wasn’t mine. It came to me through a lady who was preparing to move house and had decided to give away her books on Freecycle. She handed me a stack of them, each one different, each one carrying some fragment of a life I didn’t know.
Among them was this poem — strange, wandering, full of chortens and horse bells and rancid yak butter. I loved it instantly. It felt like a private thought someone had once scribbled down, a moment of humour or exhaustion or clarity. I felt blessed to receive it, as though I’d been handed a small piece of someone else’s inner world.
Take What You Need
My connection with Piha began long before I ever stood on its sand. It started with a stamp — a tiny picture of Lion Rock that my uncle sent me when I was young. I didn’t know then how important that image would become, or how many times I would return to that coastline in search of quiet, strength, and a place to breathe.
This photo is actually a photo of an old photograph I took over forty years ago — the colours softened now, the edges worn, but still holding the truth of that day. I didn’t have a scanner, so I photographed the original print, and somehow that makes it feel even more nostalgic, like a memory inside a memory.This old photo of Lion Rock feels like a continuation of that first stamp. A small reminder of a place that has held me gently through different seasons of my life.
Take What You Need
Love
Hope
Faith
Patience
Courage
Understanding
Peace
Passion
Healing
Strength
Beauty
Freedom
This little photograph has been with me for more than forty years, tucked safely in an album, its colours softened but still holding the truth of that day. I took it myself, long before I understood how deeply Piha would shape me, or how often I would return to its sand in search of quiet and clarity. My connection to this place began with a stamp my uncle sent me, and somehow this photo feels like the next chapter of that story — a small, steady reminder of a coastline that has walked beside me through so many versions of my life. Even now, as I write and rebuild and come back to myself, Piha remains a gentle companion, offering strength, peace, and a familiar place to breathe.
To You
I wrote this during the weeks my son’s father was in hospital. It’s a piece from a time when everything felt fragile. This was also many decades ago.
Your life has been a challenge,
and still the battle goes on
Think of yourself as a warrior
and that the fight has almost won
Remember you’ve got an army
of people on your side
Who are aways there for you
in whom you can confide
You have a wonderful family
watch them learn and grow
He’ll help you through your sad times
Give you a cuddle when you’re low
So when you’re feelings all’s too much
and there seems no end in sight
Remember you are dearly loved
and carry on the fight
Your struggle is almost over now,
and wisdom yours to keep
This lesson is a hard one
but when it’s over now
Just one more hurdle to leap
and then your life will be back on track
And your wisdom yours to keep
This lesson is a hard one
but when it’s over you will smile
You’ll discover what it’s taught you
then rest up for a while.
Life will always bring lessons,
some tougher than the rest
But you’ll look back in your old age
and know you’ve done your best
So please don’t give up at this late stage
though it seems too much to bear
Remember that we love you
and you’re almost there…
Written by Mandy
Me!
This is a poem about addiction to alcohol. I felt chained whilst I was writing this many years ago. I’ve been sober for Over a 1 year.
It remains a demon
Though for attention,
demanding I be aware
Be conscious,
Mapped the unmapped waters.
My animal cortex, uncontrollable
and controlling,
A paradox,
with my conscious,
It became compatriot.
Possible to be befriend it
Because it discloses
Who I am to me
AND I AM OF THE DIVINE!
Written by Mandy