Each day comes in turn
And then, the same again.
No respite,
Despite
Our best endeavours to change.
Inventing things to do,
Or going for a ride
Perhaps …. just to get away,
Just to stay sane for the following day.
Have we forgotten how to be alone?
Have we forgotten how to come together?
Or find a crowd?
A comforting shroud…….or despair?
Familiarity is not easy to find
Or bring to mind
In Covid time.
And so we hide!
Does time move faster each year?
Or is it just in my head?
Does the turning of the earth have a 5th gear
Secretly engaged?
It has been a year of turmoil in this life …..
Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Jew
All embroiled in daily work ….. and pestilence ….. or other strife
Nowhere within view
seems to escape to a quieter, calmer pace.
The world’s a melting pot.
Inhabited by people in an endless race
Each trying to improve their lot.
So, take a break; take stock
Join with those of differing belief….
…. or none at all ….
And feel the relief ….
…. from deadlines, from pressures, from speed …
Suspend briefly, the worry and fear……
Walk the countryside, recharge, and return refreshed indeed
To who knows what …. perhaps a better time!
They read their verse
In monotoned voice
Droning on and on….
A dirge.
No soul.
No expression
As if ‘twere
‘de rigeur’
To sound as though
They preceded the funeral bell.
I don’t want my verse
To be read….or worse…
To be heard
As though from a graveyard skull.
I don’t want it to be dull!
I want it to ZING
And PING
And STING
I want it to charge like a bull
I want it to laugh
And cry
And heave a sigh
And show emotion
Through the reader’s voice.
And….
I want the listener to enjoy…
And share the thoughts…
The pleasure…
The doubts…
The laugh…
The shouts…
……so…….don’t ever read my verse in a dreary tone!
Where is ‘lonely’?
How do you get there?
How come you know ‘where’
But never the way ….. never the journey?
No matter how you go
Walk, bus, train, boat, plane or drive
You never know the way
You never know what stage you’re at
It’s just that …
You know when you arrive!
And, what’s worse, it’s a long way back.
No motorway, no road, no footpath, no track.
No company.
No fellow travellers.
But, if you make it….
IF you make it,
And you dare look behind,
What you’ll find …
Is two sets of footprints!
If I go first…….
You’ll never walk alone,
For I shall be at your side.
You’ll never sleep alone,
For I shall be in your dreams.
You’ll never drink alone,
For I shall taste each cup.
You’ll never sing alone,
For I will know the tune.
You’ll never play alone,
For I shall be the strings.
You’ll never think alone,
For I shall guide your mind.
You’ll never love alone,
For I am a recipient of that love.
You’ll never die alone,
For I shall be waiting and with you.
We’ve seen it.
We’ve done it.
We’ve eaten it.
We’ve drunk it.
We’ve smelled it.
We’ve tasted it.
We’ve bought it.
We’ve been given it.
We’ve thrown it away.
We’ve borrowed it.
We’ve begged it.
We’ve wasted it.
We’ve rented it.
We’ve owned it.
We’ve lived in it.
We’ve changed it.
We’ve extended it.
We’ve decorated it.
We’ve driven it.
We’ve flown it.
We’ve sailed it. (Well not yet!)
We’ve ridden in it.
We’ve broken down in it.
We’ve cursed it.
We’ve laughed at it.
We’ve cried at it.
We’ve grieved over it.
We’ve created it.
We’ve raised it.
We’ve nursed it.
We’ve paid for it.
We’ve supported it.
We’ve watched it grow……….
We’ve married it off.
We’ve baby sat for it.
We’ve enjoyed it.
We haven’t finished yet ….
There’s lots to do,
And lots to see ….
And the best part …..
Is that little word ‘We’!
Plus qu’hier
Moins que demain.
There are those in this life
Whose need is assistance in times of grief and strife.
And we empower some to do that work each day.
For we assume that those in need can not…..and will shy away…
We train some to do this task…
And seldom do we ask….
How or why or when…
These hidden men and women
Do their work unsung
But beware of hidden men and women!
Don’t mock…
Or knock…
Their efforts
Beware the good.
Beware the God fearing and the righteous
Beware the meek and humble
Beware the quiet
Beware those you laugh at
Beware those you ignore
Beware those to whom you pay no heed.
For when you feel strong
When you feel invincible
When you fear nothing….
And no man….
Then….
Then will those whom you do not fear
Rise up and consume you.
Be nice to hidden men and women.
The problem with retirement
Is what you become in the eyes of others.
For men it’s harder.
Women are always what they have been….
Sisters, aunties, wives, and mothers,
Keepers of the larder.
But when a man retires, he is no more!
He is no more what he was,
He’s just a bore
Who talks about things because
There isn’t anything else to do with all that knowledge.
And if you carry on……working
There’s no concession, no quarter
No respite, just shorter
Tempers
You’re older, and in the way
You have nothing of value to say.
It’s a young man’s game.
And if you quit…..retire….desist
It’s worse…..you cease to exist
You are not what you were…
It stops…. in the blink of an eye
You have nothing of value to say.
This has to stop.
Let battle commence!
Roger's Blog 