Simply Story Poetry

Women visit Jesus' tomb on Easter morning. It is the story of Mary Magdalene at the tomb on that first Easter Sunday morning.  Mary Magdalene and other women visit Jesus' tomb on Easter morning and find it empty. After encountering angels and witnessing Jesus, Mary spreads the news. Her deep sorrow turns to joy as she becomes the first to share the gospel message. The two feature images I edited t...

The Easter Bible story. This Christian poem is Part One of two Easter poems. It tells the story of the few faithful women, including Mary Magdalene, who cooked, helped, and supported Jesus as He travelled through townships and villages, preaching, healing, and teaching His disciples. They were faithful right to the end of His life. The poem is told through the eyes of these few faithful women - wh...

A prisoner's encounter with God. I wrote this Christian poem while serving as a prison chaplain in a men's high-security prison. I went inside the prison each week with a male Chaplain. We were allowed to sit and chat with prisoners in the common area, inside the cell blocks. I often felt like I was a spectator watching in amazement at how God was working in the prison through the Bible, w...

A metaphor of life as a tapestry. This poem visualises life as a tapestry, woven from threads of varying lengths, colours, and textures. Each individual's life is depicted as a unique piece of art. While each tapestry is unique, common life experiences bind us together across different cultures and communities, reinforcing the interconnectedness of humanity. Ultimately, the beauty of life'...

Shared life experiences within communities. This poem explores the shared human experience and the connections between individuals. The challenges, life lessons, and aspirations for truth, joy, and harmony within familiar settings of cities and communities where people navigate life's ups and downs together. Through laughter and tears, familiar ties that bind us through relationships among fam...

This poem uses the rose as a metaphor for life’s beauty and pain, illustrating resilience amid hardships. The rose endures nature's elements and flourishes despite its delicate vulnerability. The Wilted Rose book ends with Grace leaving home at 18. Though The Wilted Rose concludes, Grace's pursuit of true love continues. Though her mother's life wilted in mental illness, Grace's ad...

New Year's Resolutions. Happy New Year to my readers and listeners. Diaries and calendars are on sale now that the new year has burst out of the starting blocks and will soon gain speed. New Year's Resolutions are made this month. By the end of January, some people will have already broken their well-meaning intentions, a few won't even bother setting any goals for the year, and some will be slow...

The True Value of Free Gifts: Quality Time and Talents. As we enter this year's busy time of shopping for the perfect gifts for our friends and family, remember that, as well as giving physical gifts this Christmas, there are many gifts we can give that are free yet priceless. Time is one of those free but valuable gifts we can provide. Ah, yes, but the saying says 'Money is time.' But is money th...

Spending Christmas far away from family and friends. Many families and friends are separated at this special time of the year. We have to enjoy Christmas Day the best way we can when our family cannot get together.  I chose this Featured Image partly because of what is written on her coffee mug - 'Make today awesome.' To me, this image conveys the poem's message: her longing to be elsewhere and no...

It's wonderful to enjoy Christmas Day all together in one place. But even the best plans can be turned upside down; Christmas Day can present challenges in getting the family together or getting along with everyone who has been invited. We want the day to run smoothly on this special day of the year. Sometimes it does, and sometimes it doesn't—that's family life - full of pleasant surprises and ch...

The Story of Jesus Christ began in the Garden of Eden and will end in God's new garden. This Feature Image is the same one I used in The Christmas Story in the Garden of Eden Part 1. My interpretation of this image is that God's hands hold the garden. The smoke and fire rising from the garden depict the destruction of paradise by Adam and Eve's disobedience to God in the Garden of Eden. But there...

Joseph, Mary and Jesus escape to Egypt. This poem is about the events that followed the Wise Men's (Magi) visit to Joseph, Mary, and the child King, Jesus. You can read the story in Matthew 2:13-23. The ruler of that region, King Herod, who was known for murdering anyone he believed was a threat to his reign, was furious that the Magi did not report the whereabouts of Jesus to him. So, he orde...

I wrote this poem while recalling memories of times spent with my brother and his wife and family, who live 800 km north of my hometown of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. They come down to visit family and friends a few times a year. Every year, I wish I had the money and time to go up and see them. Finally, in 2019, I went up to live in their town for a year. Back in 2011, I went on a travelling...

Wise men visit the child Jesus. It is uncertain exactly when the Wise Men, or Magi, visited Jesus. Still, it certainly wasn't at the same time as when the shepherds visited him, at his birth in the animal stable, as is commonly represented in Christmas scenes and on Christmas Cards. Apparently, it was sometime between a few months and two years after his birth. The Magi followed a star that miracu...

Baby Jesus is born. After waiting many 1000 years and prophesied in Genesis 3 verse 15, finally the Saviour of the world is born, the King of all kings is born without any human royal celebration. Yet, far off in the fields, an army of angels appears to a small group of common shepherds to announce this royal birth. God works in mysterious ways! 'God has chosen the foolish things of the world to s...

Joseph's story. Mary has told Joseph that she is pregnant. What would Joseph do now? Was Mary telling him the truth? While Joseph was trying to decide how to handle this serious challenge that had arisen between himself and Mary, God sent His angel to explain the situation to Joseph in a dream. You can read his story in Matthew 1:18-25.  This poem is Part 6 of 10 parts to the poetic script that fo...

Mary visits Elizabeth and tells Joseph. What would Joseph think of her? What would her family and community say? This is the story of Mary's visit to stay with her cousin Elizabeth after telling Joseph she was pregnant. This poem looks at Mary's reaction to receiving this wonderful yet life-changing news from God's angel. How could Mary, engaged to be married to Joseph, explain why she...

The Angel speaks to Mary. This poem zooms in on the momentous, yet private moment in history when Mary was visited by God's angel and told of her imminent pregnancy of Jesus, the son of God. Her story is found in Luke 1:26-38. Finally, the prophecy was to be fulfilled many thousands of years after God told the serpent in Genesis 3:15 that, through Eve's genealogy, a saviour would be born w...

Isaiah's Prophecy of a Saviour. This poem is based on the prophecy in Isaiah 9:1-7, which dates to about 700 years before the birth of Jesus Christ. This prophecy was made by the 8th-century BC Israelite prophet, Isaiah. In this passage, Isaiah prophesied the future birth of the Saviour of the world. The name Isaiah means 'God Is Salvation.' The book of Isaiah bears his name. He was a prophet duri...

Four women in the genealogy of Jesus. This Christian poem is Part 2 of the Christmas Story. It is based on Matthew Chapter 1, verses 3-6, in which four women are mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus. These women had troubled or scandalous life stories. It seems unusual for God to have chosen them to be included in the ancestry of the future Saviour of the world. If you are not familiar with the sto...

The Prophecy of a future saviour through Eve. The Christmas Story begins in the Garden of Eden. Genesis 3:15: God gives Christians a future Saviour of the world. Christmas in the Garden of Eden - The Christmas Story Part 1. This poem is Part 1 of 10 parts to the poetic script that follows the Christmas Story from the very beginning to the end. In my interpretation of the feature image I chose for...

This poem illustrates the allure of love, comparing it to a sparkling web that captivates and ensnares us in its threads. It emphasises the duality of love, both the nervous excitement and the challenges of embarking on a new romance. The depiction of love's threads shining in the light of attraction highlights the magnetic pull it exerts, drawing people closer. Once someone engages with this...

The Balance of Isolation and Community This poem reflects on aloneness, which the poet initially believed to be understood until I experienced it. Confronted with isolation, feelings of loneliness and longing for community arose. Through this challenge, I discovered an appreciation for solitude and the value of connections with family and friends. I first learnt about the concept of aloneness whil...

I endured months of chemotherapy and a Stem Cell transplant to rid my body of Multiple Myeloma that had spread up my spine and in my hips and ribs. I was too sick, too tired and too vulnerable to germs to go outside, other than to the hospital for frequent appointments, or as an inpatient. It felt like I was living in a cave. I couldn't read books due to 'brain fog', so I listened to a...

This poem likens a quiet-natured, shy person to Van Gogh's famous painting 'Sunflowers'. Being called a wallflower signifies being shy and reserved, but doesn't diminish one's vibrancy or ability to inspire and arouse joy and curiosity. Just because you might be shy and quiet in nature does not mean you cannot be a colourful, interesting and inspiring person. Van Gogh's fam...