John is a social worker working in the field of disability management and holds degrees in social work, rehabilitation services, and psychology.  He is the author of three books of poetry: “March” (2019), “The Seasons of Us” (2019) and New Days (2020). His work has appeared widely in numerous literary journals, magazines, and anthologies internationally. John is also a Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net nominee and lives in Caledon Ontario, Canada with his wife and two children.

Rome’s Shadow

We have all grown up
In Rome’s shadow
The story of the world
Unravelled before us
From the beginnings
Of primitive yearning
Plunging
Into uncharted seas
Navigating by the stars
To brave new lands
Beyond the walled cities
Of our understanding
And the banquets 
Of our deepest desires
Over the bones
Of Etruscan whispers
And marching
Step by step
Toward the fall

On the Road to Monaco

From the tower house
To Monaco
Is only twenty minutes
Through winding
Cliffside two-lanes
Perched above the deep blue
Of the Mediterranean
Below the high walls 
Of villas
Draped in bougainvillea
With the Grande Cornishe
Unfolding like a serpent
And the heat
From the summer road
Wrapping around 
The little convertible
Bone dry and glove like
The grip
Broken only by the breeze
Over the windshield
The faster
The better

A Boy Walks to School

I remember
Walking to school
As a small boy
On the small island
In the endless blue bubble
The sway of casuarinas 
High on the beach
And the coconut palms
Dancing with seagrass
To the beat
Of an early morning breeze
With the surf lapping time
To my stilted stride
Gathering shells
And pondering 
The sea-sculpted drift wood
Bleached by sun and storms
Scoured 
By the chalk white sand
And twisted
Into ancient forms
A lone morning schooner
Arcs gently 
Over the faint horizon 
Sparking dreams of adventure
Far away and beyond
With the first bell ringing
Off in the distance
Letting me know
That I’ll be late
Again