Category Archives: Taking control

Imagine

Try to imagine this with me

Quiet your mind, let it roam free

Looking out over a calm blue sea

At a foreign shore where you could be

 

Drift across that peaceful scene

To wave kissed beaches, still pristine

Edged by tall trees in verdant green

No sound but bird song, so serene

 

There, just there, pause and wait

Relish the moment and aspirate

Here where time is more sedate

Open your soul to a higher state

 

A Poor Crop

If my tomato plants could speak

They would surely sing with praise

About the tidy greenhouse

As they enjoy summer days

 

Grow bags lined up precisely

Canes readied for support

Windows open for fresh air

A perfect life in short

 

Why, then, do they bear so little

Of the round and deep red fruit

It offends me and seems selfish

Of that there’s no dispute

 

Each evening I check in on them

Down the winding garden path

But their offerings are so paltry

I think they’re having a laugh

 

My neighbour says they’re dying

But how can he be sure

He says they must need feeding

But, like watering, at that I’m poor

 

An Unexpected Caller

A caller rang the doorbell

Straight way my heartbeat skipped

Who can this be a-ringing

With no visitors on the script

 

The house is so untidy

I haven’t combed my hair

Fish smells linger from the kitchen

The timing’s so unfair

 

No chance to try addressing

The mad jumble of concerns

Again the bell rings threatening

To open my can of worms

 

A moment’s hesitation

Safe this side of the door

Jumping with surprise as

A note flutters to the floor

 

Then footsteps gate-ward tread

As I guiltily scan the card

‘We tried to deliver a parcel today

You must collect it from our yard’

 

Deaf NOT Daft

Dappled conversations

Confusing to the ear

Brightly tinkling chatter

Dull, no longer clear

 

Silent slippery sentences

Using lips to lend a clue

Shattered to staccato

Once they’re not in view

 

Sorry, I didn’t catch that

Say it once more, please

I’m deaf not daft, but sadly

Words are like Swiss cheese

Watching Not Helping

She’s such a little darling

He is as good as gold

When asked to look at the TV

They do as they are told

 

Out shopping they’re so helpful

As they run around the store

Bringing things they think I’ll need

Like chocolates, toys and more

 

Dodging round the trolleys

They’re so nimble on their feet

Trying out the pick and mix

And other things to eat

 

Selfish people can be grumpy

When standing in their way

And nasty managers even moan

About their precious display

 

But they don’t see them with their pals

Outside, when I’m not there

They seem to get along just fine

And injuries are rare

 

At school they are so popular

The teachers know them well

They soon would learn their ABC

If they just sit still for a spell

 

I do my best to help them

Like shopping for their clothes

I get the best designer shoes

And piercings for their nose

 

I think that I’m so lucky

Compared to some I know

My kids are independent

And I love to watch them grow.

Forming Opinions

If opinion is divided,

Consensus not in sight.

Head and heart may disagree,

But both cannot be right

 

Bring to bear one measure;

The final acid test.

Belief may be convincing,

But evidence is best.

 

A Toast

Come any who might with me dine
Of choicest foods and finer wine
And know full well that down the line
You too must share this cup of mine

Then do not seek to chide thine host
Instead drink deep that final toast
For that you have you forfeit most
Of what remains you cannot boast

The Threat from Artificial Intelligence

Many things have threatened our lives
War, disease, terrorists with knives
Humanity’s resilience on a world-wide scale
Brings overconfidence that we always prevail

Now, blindly, we seek our nemesis to grow
Racing to unleash a formidable foe
A holy grail with potential for good?
More, our undoing, not understood

For scientists strive around the globe
To create an electronic temporal lobe
The ‘AI’ juggernaut  is on its way
But let’s not wake to rue that day

Once created, how to hold it in check
To stop society becoming a wreck
Pandora’s box; lid open wide
Mankind swept away on tsunami tide

Computers manage our knowledge; they have a key role
In energy grids, finance, air traffic control
Vast infrastructures already in place
Black boxes communicating with their own race

Once these machines are able to think
Harnessing speeds faster than a lightning blink
With capacity to accelerate their own evolution
What regard then for our frail constitution

Not bound by ethics to consider our fate,
Would they preserve a welfare state?
Circuits and chips that become aware
May not accept that they need to care

For earth’s resources they will compete
Serving no purpose, we’d be obsolete
How soon before we are oppressed
If they turn off the lights, we’ll do the rest

Considering Cruising

To pass some time upon the boat
Observe your fellows whilst afloat
It’s human nature; you’ll soon note
Most are friendly; some more remote

In conversation, there are those
Who heedlessly tread on others’ toes
Forthright opinions they’ll impose
Deep-rooted bigotry to expose

Sunbeds on deck are a common source
Of tensions, as you wend your course
Early risers show little remorse
Placing towels before breakfast; their claim to enforce

Seasoned cruisers will often enquire
Whilst subtly inspecting your evening attire
The pecking order is their only desire
They’ve sailed more often, it will transpire

But don’t despair of having fun
It’s a perfect way to get some sun
Each day a new port to hit and run
Ticking off destinations, one by one

And FOOD!, such food, you can’t resist
Meals can become why you exist
So exercise regularly; in this persist
Or remove that cruise from your bucket list