Such is the fate of the timid
That chance will be denied
Scenes of what might have been
Are painted on eyelids, inside
….
Memories that have no past
Faces and places never seen
Hands wanting for the holding
The other side of time’s screen
…
Dreamers know such losses
On nights that last all day
Things that would be different
Had they taken the other way
Racism is treating people as ‘others’
The opposite of acting like brothers
We are not designed to be the same
Whatever we are, we are not to blame
….
Is it part of the human condition
To want to establish our position
In some imaginary pecking order
‘Us’ versus ‘them’ from a historic border
….
It seems we have an inner need
Looking down on some other creed
To feel a bit better about our lot
Rejecting notions of a mixing pot
….
But assimilation is nature’s way
Differences, ultimately, become passé
Though bigotry and injustice may cause delay
All will be free to be who they are, one day
….
Until then, use well the power to vote
Campaign peacefully, equality promote
Practise humanity, value all life
Have empathy, turn your back on strife
All must pass through that fated portal
Which awaits in time every mortal
Build good karma whilst ere you may
The journey beyond will be yours one day
One is an arbitrary killer, which puts no value on life
The other holds an unspoken tenet: that some people are worth less than others
One is without consciousness, the other without conscience
One attacks vulnerable people, the other makes people vulnerable.
Both exhibit a lack of humanity, compassion, and reason
One is invisible to the naked eye; the other, insidious, is hidden in plain sight
One will, with perseverance, eventually be driven away by the ingenuity of mankind
The other will endure in the dark corners of men’s minds, until a cure can be found for prejudice.
If we were made in God’s image, too bad s/he didn’t have the opportunity to improve the processes of evacuating bodily waste.
I had the first two lines
Popped straight into my head
I didn’t write them down
Gone….all that can be said
Listen if you will in the quiet of the night
To the scraping and scratching of things out of sight
To the noise of blood as it roars in your ears
To the beat of your heart as it measures your fears
Somewhere in the house a clock says tick-tock
Below in the street a key clicks in its lock
The third stair from the top creaks as it might
When stepped on in stealth by something so slight
Then hinges in want of an oil drop or more
Announce a faint shadow at the bedroom door
You turn on a light to see who is there
Not even a dust mote moves in the air
Return to the pillow, try to find sleep
The visitor is gone, no need to weep
I must stay positive, I really must
Scampering across this film of dust
Whiskers tremble on twitching nose
Alert, examining empty shadows
Mice, who once were spoiled for choice
Now mourn their loss in squeaky voice
Tiny claws make tinny sounds
On bare metal shelving battlegrounds
A dozen different types of bread
Empty spaces here instead
Beans and pasta, once stacked proud
Now all gone, with the crowd
Long life milk disappeared
Hoarded selfishly, and not shared
Toilet rolls that made a good nest
Vanished suddenly with the rest
Long gone ancestors and early forebears
Told of shortages in the war years
Awry the plans of mice and men
Failed to stop it once again
This orient-born global threat
A cloud passing before the sun
Its silent shadow crossing our lands
Killing without a gun
The world awaits the final account
Holding its collective breath
Invisible, insidious, stealthy, amoral
This viral agent of death
There is no border it respects
No peoples beyond its reach
‘Self-isolate’ is the official advice
Don’t panic-buy they pathetically beseech
Come the time when those left re-emerge
Grateful to be disease free
Only to know it will happen again
A Malthusian catastrophe
Tossing, turning in a sweat soaked bed
Tugging moist sheets from legs of lead
Cracking an eye to the light of dawn
Another day’s prospect, this new morn
Pulling on socks, trousers, shoes
Tee shirt with logo “What’s to lose”
Brushing teeth that taste of booze
How did I get another new bruise?
What did I eat, it’s hard to remember?
My stomach churning like a blender
Shakily pouring a glass of juice
All this down to alcohol abuse?
Perhaps I should cut back a bit
But can I show the needed grit?
Jut now I have the power to decide
But think tonight, I’ll go with the tide
