poem | Wayne Visser

January 27, 2023January 28, 2023

Race of our Lives

We are in the race of our lives
Whether or not we know it, running slow or fast
While time, our enduring opponent
Is patient, plodding, turning the future into the past

And we, like the hare of our folktales
Dart hither and thither, diverted and delighted
Rushing from moment to fleeting moment
Beyond the narrow track, the finish line unsighted

We are in the race of our lives
Though we may linger, and languish, and squander
As if we have all the breath in the world
And it matters not how we live and where we wander

For we, unlike the tortoise of our sun’s daily march
Mistake speed for progress, and miles for meaning
Chasing each mirage, be it gain or glory or love
Straying from the course, distracted by our dreaming

We are in the race of our lives
Yet in the final strait, who cares how or where we ran
It matters only that we took part at all, and in the end
That we know ourselves better than when we began

Book

Life in Transit: Favourite Travel & Tribute Poems

This creative collection, now in its 2nd edition, brings together travel and tribute poems by Wayne Visser. The anthology pays tribute to the likes of Nelson Mandela, Maya Angelou, Barack Obama, Antoni Gaudí & Leonardo da Vinci, and reflects on travels ranging from China and South Africa to Ecuador and Russia. Life is lived in the in-between / In transit / Between coming and going / Between staying and moving on / Between here and there / And what we call home / What we call settled or contented / Is merely a resting place / A station for refuelling / A nexus for reconnecting / A junction for changing direction. Buy the paper book / Buy the e-book.

November 6, 2022July 7, 2023

On the Brink

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It’s true, our world is on the brink
A species gone each time we blink
Each one another broken link
As oceans rise and nations sink

So much is lost, so much to mourn
So high the cost, so deep the scorn
Yet something new is being born
The blackest night precedes the dawn

Our time is short, we’re in a race
We must act now, pick up the pace
The simple truth we all must face
Is nature needs to take back space

Let’s let new life reseed and grow
Let woods come back and rivers flow
Rewild the land and seas and know
That nature thrives when we let go

Wayne Visser © 2022

Book

Wishing Leaves: Favourite Nature Poems

This creative collection, now in its 3rd edition, brings together nature poems by Wayne Visser, celebrating the diversity, beauty and ever-changing moods of our planet. The anthology includes many old favourites like “I Think I Was a Tree Once” and “A Bug’s Life”, as well as brand new poems like “Monet’s Dream” and “The Environmentalist”. Then as we turned our faces to the moon / Our hands entwined, our hearts in sync, in tune / We felt the fingers of the silken breeze / And made our wishes on the falling leaves / A gust of wind set off a whispered sigh / Among the trees that leaned against the sky. Buy the paper book / Buy the e-book.

November 5, 2022December 4, 2022

Enigma

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Enigma

Your life is a giant puzzle
A maze of mystery and secrets
But what are you searching for?
What is the code that needs cracking
At the heart of life’s enigma?

It’s about finding out what you like
And working hard to ensure
That it becomes what you’re good at
Because life’s too short and difficult
To be doing what you don’t like

It’s about finding out who you love
And taking care to ensure
That they remain your main priority
Because life’s too long and incredible
To be with anyone you don’t love

It’s about finding out who you are
And taking steps to ensure
That you love that person unconditionally
Because life’s too strange and precious
To be chasing someone else’s shadow

Your life is an epic expedition
A trail of valleys and summits
And what you are moving towards
What you are discovering along the way
Is an answer to life’s question

Book

String, Donuts, Bubbles and Me: Favourite Philosophical Poems

This creative collection, now in its 3rd edition, brings together philosophical poems by Wayne Visser. In this anthology, he muses on subjects ranging from space, angels and destiny to time, science and meaning in life. According to scientists / The world’s made of string / That buzzes and fuzzes / Or some such strange thing / It’s also a donut / That curls round a hole / With middles and riddles / Just like a fish bowl / And there’s no mistaking / It’s more than 3-D / With twenty or plenty / Dimensions unseen / Still others insist / It’s really a bubble / That’s popping and bopping / Through the lenses of Hubble. Buy the paper book / Buy the e-book.

September 4, 2022December 4, 2022

Call to Adventure

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Call to Adventure

This is a call to adventure:
To set off together for distant lands
To stand with each other through shifting sands
Trusting the current enough to let go
Having the wisdom to go with the flow

Adventures are invitations:
To see the world through different eyes
To try and fail, to see what flies
Knowing the map is never true
Reading the signs, chasing the blue

This is a call to adventure:
To puzzle together through every maze
To learn from each other for all your days
Growing by living, like birds on the wing
Changing through seasons from winter to spring

Adventures are journeys:
To fill the heart and stretch the mind
To lose the way, to seek and find
Reading the stars, the sun and moon
Happy in sync, whistling a tune

This is a call to adventure:
To stay strong together through storm and sun
To fight for each other and stand as one
Trusting the pathway and where it will lead
Having the patience to nurture love’s seed

Book

Life in Transit: Favourite Travel & Tribute Poems

June 19, 2022

The Stoic

I am a stoic
But that does not mean
That I deny life’s pleasures
Rather, I embrace the fullness of life
Always delighted by its highs
And ever expecting its lows
Knowing that the path to equanimity
Lies somewhere in between

I am a stoic
But that does not mean
That I dull down life’s colours
Rather, I accept the vagaries of life
Always influencing what I can
And letting go of the rest
Knowing that the secret to happiness
Is telling the difference

I am a stoic
But that does not mean
That I spurn life’s potential
Rather, I study the patterns of life
Always finding beauty everywhere
And befriending the chaos
Knowing that the purpose of existence
Is to have existed at all

Book

String, Donuts, Bubbles and Me: Favourite Philosophical Poems

June 19, 2022June 19, 2022

Against the Odds

We met upon the battlefield
And you, a warrior for the cause
Defending all the rights of those
Who journeyed to our distant shores

We found our love in forests green
And there, your wounds began to heal
The wooden staff I carved by hand
Replaced the weary sword of steel

We set off on an unknown trail
That rose to meet a mountain range
The sun reflected in your eyes
Inspired us both to make a change

We each discovered hidden paths
New ways in which to learn and lead
And now a movement lives and breathes
Because we planted that first seed

We found our bliss beneath the trees
Our cottage made into a home
It is our refuge from the storm
No matter where we reach and roam

We met against the odds of fate
Now those you love are by your side
I’m lucky to be one of them
To hold your hand with joy and pride.

Book

Icarus: Favourite Love Poems

This creative collection, now in its 2nd edition, brings together love poems by Wayne Visser. The anthology traces love’s agony (“Broken Dreams”) and ecstasy (“Galaxies Cart-Wheeling”), from first blush (“Almost Strangers”) to full bloom (“Say ‘I Do!’”), as we fly to love. You’ve given me the gift of golden wings / The endless sphere of blue imaginings / The chance to rise above the silver clouds / The will to cast off untold ghostly shrouds / Don’t fly too high / Don’t rise too fast / Don’t tease the sky / Don’t taunt the past / You’ve given me the hope of warmer days / The blessed kiss of the sun’s fiery rays. Buy the paper book / Buy the e-book.

May 21, 2022June 29, 2022

Healers of the Earth

Some may see a patch of dirt
But you see so much more
You see a place where seeds can grow
Where nature can restore
The living soil, the buds of hope
The blooms and buzzing bees
You see a place of flourishing
Of birds and frogs and trees
For we are healers of the Earth
We make her frayed web whole
And as we do, we heal ourselves
In body, mind and soul

Wayne Visser © 2022

Book

Wishing Leaves: Favourite Nature Poems

April 24, 2022

Sculpted Life, Crafted Love

Each life is like a block of stone
With endless possibility
And as we live, we hew and hone
Our dreams of who we want to be
Each choice we make, each chance unknown
Unveils a face of mystery
Each flag we plant, each throw of bones
Brings clarity to what we see

Each love is like a quilt being sewn
With stories of eternity
And as we love, we’re not alone
Like roots entangled tree-to-tree
Each risk we take, each layer shown
Reveals another hidden key
Each season brings us nearer home
Upon the journey to be free

Book

String, Donuts, Bubbles and Me: Favourite Philosophical Poems

January 22, 2022January 22, 2022

Never Too Late

It’s never too dark to light with a spark
The blackness of night as colours flash bright
To flame in the gloom and leave a good mark
There’s always a gleam of hope left in sight
It’s never too dark, not ever too dark

It’s never too bold to break from the mould
Of habits and rules, of nations and schools
To rewrite the plot of tales we’ve been told
There’s always a magus dressed as a fool
It’s never too bold , not ever too bold

It’s never too soon to shoot for the moon
With visions and schemes, with rockets and dreams
To wish on a star, go bust and then boom
There’s always a chance to catch the sunbeams
It’s never too soon, not ever too soon

It’s never too high to reach for the sky
With ladders to climb, one step at a time
To strive without rest, to fail and retry
There’s always a rhythm, always a rhyme
It’s never too high, not ever to high

It’s never too late to regenerate
Our land and our seas, the fish and the trees
To rewild the earth and change the world’s fate
There’s always new life buzz-buzzing like bees
It’s never too late, not ever too late.

Book

Seize the Day: Favourite Inspirational Poems

This creative collection, now in its 3rd edition, brings together favourite inspirational poems by Wayne Visser. The anthology takes us on a journey through the peaks and troughs of life, celebrating the indomitable human spirit.. It includes many old favourites like “Poets Must Be” and “Chasing the Blue”, as well as brand new poems like “The Writer” and “Making Ripples”. Sages through the ages wisely say: / Carpe Diem – seize the dawning day / Oh, would that I could assuage that thirst / But the day conspires to seize me first! / With the hurry and scurry / Of home’s frantic flurry / And the hustle and bustle / Of work’s tangled tussle. Buy the paper book / Buy the e-book.

January 11, 2022January 11, 2022

Fifty-One

There are years that crawl and years that fly
Years that succeed where others can but try
Some years are bursting at the seams
While others scarcely have the means

I’ve known the years that stick, or change
The years at home and years that range
Sometimes the years are bold and bright
While other years stay black as night

With fifty-one years laid to rest
The last was walked in valleys low
A year that put me to the test
A shadow out of which to grow