he gave me a shabby old pouch
filled up with pomegranate seeds
& i wondered what this could mean
how fertile he wished me to be
he showed how many seeds i got
as much as happy days are left
& i swore we’d marry right there
no priest nor church ‘neath nude sun’s haze
he squeezed a seed ‘tween two fingers
& the juice sprinkled his palm red
like virginity on crisp sheets
i did not even hesitate
by TETIANA ALEKSINA & TONY SINGLE
© All rights reserved 2024
don’t cry
we’ve a full life, don’t we
with full bellies
& you are here by my side
with love aplenty to fill our sail
own nothing & be happy
is what they’re bound to say
yet we’re happy anyway
are we not
you are mine & i am yours
too many fish in this world
are fighting to be upstream
near the lighthouse seen
no such thing as water in nets
only good days & some regrets
so, let’s be mindful, love
time is a loose spool
& the river winds on
by TONY SINGLE
© All rights reserved 2025
is this all you are
a photo cast in my wake
death by memories
my sail full of scuppered pleas
another ship lost at sea
by TONY SINGLE
© All rights reserved 2024
i am not your project
not in need of saving
to be restored from drafts
nor be redone from scratch
not a work in progress
nor a fixer-upper
not in your portfolio
nor part of your cv
so kindly fuck right off
you smug, self-righteous toff
look for another dunce
to suffer your ‘guidance’
by TETIANA ALEKSINA & TONY SINGLE
© All rights reserved 2024
unbolt me 