blind and deaf

my old age love, my urge to hear

a little music in human laughter

for my frail body to do my final dance

made me blind to the world’s taste

but what caused your blindness

making you bite the hand that fed

day and night as you were nestled 

in that heart you kick now to bleed

and what triggered a pile up of wax

to the point of deafness in your soul

too, stubbornly refusing an active feel

of my humanness, brokenness, my need

© henry victor            24.01.2018

To My Eternity

Your whistling

I clearly heard

Your colour

I see not

Your name

I know not

But

To my eternity

I take you

Note: This poem was published in Songs of the Street, Volume V, edited by Arlene Williams & Ron MacLellan (2002) with the following editorial note:

Henry Victor is a published poet with two collections of poems No Tears (1998) and Frail Floret (1999). He uses poetry to promote more humane values, social justice, cultural pluralism and communal harmony. He believes that his task is to give “some voice” to the “voiceless”. “To My Eternity” was the winner of the “The End of the World” category of the Songs of the Street poetry contest, which was sponsored by Inner-City Pastoral Ministry. Other poems by Henry can be found on pages 19 and 46.

no tears

since all tears

have been converted to thick ink

and i have been taught

and trained by pen

none have i to shed in vain

earlier, and even now much tears

have been expended

for purifying my mind, heart

and soul – no! my entire being

also teaching me the secrets

of the unseen and increasing

my understanding of the seen

the continuing tears

eventually turn to be the cement

that holds myself

together with stray birds

those flying with broken wings

the wretched of the earth

henry victor       04.02.1995