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Whispers on Paper, York (2026)

08/02/2026

As Lent approaches I thought I'd write a poem. hope you like it 🙂🙏.

This year for lent I'll be giving up all social media.

The Wanderer

I’ll take a little journey where the quiet colors dwell,
To ring a silver chime inside my spirit’s lonely well.
I’ll leave the heavy honey and the sweet fruit on the vine,
To taste the misty morning and the sunlight’s golden wine.

I’m drifting on a velvet cloud across a desert sea,
To find the little flower that is hidden deep in me.
Forty days of wandering beneath the indigo,
To watch the seeds of stardust in the garden start to grow.

I’ll talk to Brother Raven as he circles in the sky,
And ask the ancient mountain for the how and for the why.
With ashes on my forehead like a smudge of charcoal grey,
I’ll dance away the shadows till the darkness turns to day.

So let the world go spinning in its hurry and its pride,
I’m floating on the stillness of a rising inner tide.
And when the bells of April start to whistle in the trees,
I’ll bring a gift of peace back on a gentle Easter breeze.

©️ N.J.C.Orange

06/02/2026

The Willow and the Wave

Golden is the morning light that melts the winter snow,
Silver is the spider’s web that catches winds that blow.
The river runs through ragged rocks and sings a song so free,
And like the river rolling on, that’s how you’ve got to be.

They say the oak is mighty, yes, it stands so tall and proud,
But I prefer the willow tree, head down within the cloud.
She sways upon the stormy breeze, she bends down to the ground,
But when the sun comes out again, she’s still there safe and sound.

Resilience is a crystal stone, found deep within the sand,
It glows a little brighter when you hold it in your hand.
So if the darkness tumbles down, and shadows start to creep,
Just remember dreams are waiting in the silence of your sleep.

The tide goes out, the tide comes in, the seasons turn around,
And flowers bloom from tiny seeds beneath the frozen ground.
So wear your sorrow like a cloak of saffron, blue, and red,
For there are sunny days enough, waiting just ahead.

©️ N.J.C.Orange.

04/02/2026

The Broken Compass

The rain is drumming on the old tin roof, The sky is gray and it’s leaking proof. The clouds are heavy like a coat of lead, I’m listening to the words that the shadows said.

The merchant stands by the garden gate, He says he’s early but he’s far too late. He’s selling diamonds made of frozen tears, To a man who hasn't spoken in thirty years.

The signpost points to the north and south, With a rusted tongue in a wooden mouth. The road is long and the wheels are slow, And there ain't no telling which way to go.

The lantern flickers in the howling gale, The ink is fading on the holy grail. So pack your bags and find your shoes, There ain't nothing left but the highway blues.

©️ N.J.C.Orange

02/02/2026

The Narrow Gate

The valley floor was choked with mist, And voices hissed from every side, They wove a web of false remorse And stoked the darkness I had tried to hide. The tempter whispered, "Just this once, The weight is more than you can bear," And for a moment, I looked down, And felt the pull of old despair.

But then I felt a different touch, A hand upon my trembling back, A light that didn't come from me Broke through the shadows and the black. I heard a Word above the lies "You are not yours to throw away, I bought your life with something more Than all the debts you tried to pay."

The people who had made me small, Who used my name to build their snares, Became like dust upon the wind, Vanishing beneath my prayers. For if the Spirit dwells within, Then who am I to yield the throne? I am a temple, cleansed and barred, And I am held by God alone.

The urge subsided like the tide, The chains were broken at the knee, I own the choice to walk in light, Because the Truth has set me free. I turned my back upon the edge, With steady feet and quiet grace, For I am claimed by higher love, And there is no more shrinking space.

©️ N.J.C.Orange

30/01/2026

A poem I wrote today about the lotus flower. Did you know The lotus represents the triumph of the spirit, it begins in the dark, feeding on the mud to fuel its climb through murky water until it breaks the surface, completely unstained. It doesn't bloom despite the mud, but because of it transforming a difficult past into a pure, new beginning. Hope you like it.

The upward reach.

Deep in the silt where the light doesn't reach,
A lesson the dark and the heavy can teach.
The world is a weight and the water is thick,
And the heart of the seed feels lonely and sick.

But it doesn't stay buried, it doesn't give in,
It knows where the surface and safety begin.
It pushes through shadow, it climbs through the grey,
With a quiet persistence that finds its own way.

Then out of the murk and the tangle of w**ds,
It breaks into color that nobody feeds.
Untouched by the mud where its journey began,
It opens its palms like a soft, white fan.

To bloom is a choice and to rise is an art
A brand new beginning for any tired heart.
For the lotus reminds us, as petals unfold,
That the deepest of mud makes the brightest of gold.

© N.J.C.Orange.

28/01/2026

The Trial I Never Signed Up For.

The air in the room has turned to lead,
From words that never should’ve been said.
I’m standing in a court of ghosts and lies,
While a friend looks on with suspicious eyes.
They want me to sit, they want me to talk,
To measure my steps and the way that I walk,
But why should I offer a single word
To a story so hollow and so absurd?

I feel the heat rising, the urge to strike,
To show them what angry actually looks like.
But the biggest insult isn’t the thief,
Or the man who is causing this sudden grief
It’s the silence where a No should be.
The fact that you didn't stand up for me.
The fact that you’d sit us down in a row
To see which way the wind might blow.

My character isn't a thing to debate,
I won't bring my truth to your table of hate.
If you need a meeting to know who I am,
Then you never knew me, and I don't give a damn.
Keep the drama, the groups, and the broken trust,
I’ll leave this friendship to turn into dust.
I’m walking away with my head held high,
I have no more breath for a stranger’s lie.

© N.J.C.Orange.

19/01/2026

The weight of the wait.

The floor is cold beneath my shaking feet,
I face the glass and taste a bitter defeat.
The numbers glow with such a steady light,
They do not care I fought with all my might.

I stood before the rack of heavy steel,
And pushed until the pain was all I’d feel.
My heart was drumming loud inside my chest,
I gave the world my absolute best.

The fabric of my shirt is drenched and torn,
I’ve carried this since early in the morn.
I traded every breath for burning heat,
And yet the tally stays in full retreat.

It feels as though I’m running in a cage,
A quiet, heavy, suffocating rage.
I pour my soul into the iron floor,
But still the scale demands a little more.

The gravity is thick and hard to shed,
With every step, a feeling filled with dread.
I’m working for a change I cannot see,
To break the chains of what is left of me.

I’m tired of the fight and standing still,
Against the slope of this exhausting hill.
But though the numbers won't begin to fall,
I’ll find the strength to answer back the call.

© N.J.C.Orange.

15/01/2026

I wrote this as a Christian song but rather like it more as a poem. Enjoy! 😊🙏

Blessed are you, Lord our God.

From the dawn of the first bright morning,
To the stars that fill the night,
We can see Your hand of glory,
Shining forth in perfect light.
You spoke the word, and life awakened,
The very breath that fills our soul.

Through the valleys where we wander,
And the trials we must face,
Your unfailing truth sustains us,
Covered by Your great embrace.
You draw us near when we have fallen,
And lead us on to make us whole.

Blessed are You, Lord Our God,
King of the universe,
Yours is the power, the love, the grace,
Blessed are You, Lord Our God,
Your mercy will endure,
We lift our praise to see Your face

Oh, what peace we find in knowing,
That Your name is ever near,
We will walk in faith and reverence,
Casting out all doubt and fear.

To the one who was and is and ever will be,
Amen, Amen, Blessed Are You, Lord Our God.

© N.J.C.Orange.

07/01/2026

The Many Faced Ghost

I wear a different skin in every room,
To some, a ray of light, to some, the gloom.
I am the villain in a story told by one,
A shadow cast before the setting sun.

To others, I’m the fool, a painted face,
A punchline used to fill a hollow space.
They see the mask and think they know the bone,
Judging a house by just a single stone.

I’ve been the savior in a desperate hour,
And then the w**d within a garden bower.
A hero to the stranger I once fed,
A ghost to those who wish that I were dead.

It’s exhausting work to be so many things,
To play the pauper and to play the kings.
The truth is raw and stripping off the pride
There is no ME they haven't modified.

But let them keep the versions they’ve designed,
The distorted portraits living in their mind.
The only soul I truly need to keep,
Is the one I face before I fall asleep. ✌

© N.J.C.Orange.

Whispers on Paper

08/02/2026

06/02/2026

04/02/2026

02/02/2026

30/01/2026

28/01/2026

19/01/2026

15/01/2026

07/01/2026

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