Rallentanda

Rallentanda

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Sunday Muse # 77



this very latest
creative approach to discipline
(very popular in sweden }
gives a new meaning to ' time out ' 
replacing strict outdated methods
such as
sitting on the naughty step for ten minutes
or  no tv for an hour 

the odd passing pantechnicon
wild bears and wolves 
could prove to be a slight problem
but then  risk taking is part of the journey
confronting your demons is the way
to overcome them

besides there is plenty of fresh air
with  views to inspire a connection
to the environment and reflect on profound concepts
which is what we all know children love to do
if only they were not distracted by traditional subjects
like reading writng and arithmetic or
discipline of any kind

best of all on' time out'
you don't have to go to school
tolerate relics of a past age
boring teachers lecturing you
on
why you shouldn't take drugs
why you shouldn't bully others
why you shouldn't light wild fires in the  school holidays
or
why you shouldn't snatch handbags from old ladies in the mall

worst of all
there are too many  politically incorrect teachers
espousing oppressive fanatically religious based attitudes
such as
why you shouldn't  have sex before the age of ten
why you have to wait until high school before participating in
the very popular sex ed lesson of slipping the condoms over the banana
poor kids
all these restrictions
this haranguing just  goes on and on and on

with any luck in some enlightened country
traditional school subjects and school will be banned forever
and of course there will be research to show how much
happier well adjusted and better informed the kids will be
running free frolicking naked in the forest practising their sign language
because no one can read spell or write anymore
in the progressive institutions of la la land











Saturday, October 12, 2019

OctPoWrimo 2019 - Week 3

Day 13

hugging a tree




An avenue of ancient trees destroyed
Anzac Parade Sydney Australia.



instead of skipping
round and round the mulberry bush
hug a tree instead
cos if we keep chopping the trees all down
we'll surely all be dead

so kindly heed this warning
politicians and developers out there
decimating the poor old trees
without a thought or care

money  and votes wont protect you
when your final day has come
burning in hell for eternity
means you're really just plain dumb



Day 14

Mother Earth






a mother earth personality type
she was not
she could create thunder and lightning
with a  single look

high drama was the genre
of the family theatre
each player deserving of
an academy award
(myself included)
we are alike in many ways

we clashed terrribly
mount vesuvius meets krakatoa
but her heart was in the right place
she did her best
she was a good person


Day 15





Mother May I

remind you that what you told me was untrue
i was not  delivered by the stork
and you did not find me in the cabbage patch
because i remember clearly being dropped into the marigolds
by a flock of doves



Day 16

Father Time





a thank you from
a grateful and loving son

what better way to spend
quality time with your dad
than in carnegie hall
performing together

an experience of a life time
for Lang Guo - ren
his beaming smile says it all

Lang Lang's father gave up his job as a policeman in a rural area to move to a city where Lang lang could study the piano and pursue his dream They lived in poverty for many years. His mother could not go with them because she had to  help support them in her present employment.They were separated for about seven years.

Day 17

Family




undoubtedly
the most difficult
decision to make
to cut that cord

she wouldn't do it

the destructive family member
who keeps deliberately punching holes
in the life raft
must be cast adrift
for the sake and survival of the others

she wouldn't do it

the result
a toxic miserable dysfunctional family
a nightmare - a living hell
and for what ?

he is in his forties now
she is still bailing him out of trouble





Day 18

My First Disappointment  





snooping  around
in nana's wonderland wardrobe
i saw the dress  - yellow and beautiful

on christmas day under the tree
it was wrapped in a box with a handwritten card
from santa
my little heart sank like a stone

i was seven - bingo the penny dropped
never let on for years
that i knew who was eating the cake
and drinking the port left out by the fireplace
on christmas  eve - it wasn't santa

Day 19

Purple




singapore orchids
purple my morning
the oranges all aglow
a spring greeting
after a long winter



Day 20

Mountains or Oceans






the miles tick over
on my old red clunker
alternating between
the bush and the sea
best of both worlds
the ancient plains
meet
the south pacific

one day
when i am unable to drive
long distances anymore
i will have to choose





my old red clunker (hand painted)

Friday, October 11, 2019

Octpowrimo 2019

Day 12







Black is the Colour





this takes me back to the time
we livcd  in paddo as students
all those years ago

you had just discovered counter tenors
you said you would perform with him one day
and you did
you did everything you said
you were ever going to do

ran into you decades later
you had not aged much
but you were unrecognisable

that warm funny person
who used to sing on the stone wall
outside the church waiting for the bus
had disappeared

the rock solid success
had come at a price
the chill and indifference
were palpable

for the first time
i warmed to my failure and began
to cherish my uneventful  life

Wild Friday with Saana Rizvi - Poets United

Tuesday, October 8, 2019

Everyday Living


everyday living for the modern day superwoman or
how to ensure balmy behaviour in advanced age


they did it
she did it
i did it
some of us are still doing it

no one knows how
because it's not humanly possible
yet somehow we survive

i wonder
if it takes a toll on our sanity
at some point later on


please excuse me for a moment
i need to make a call to the police
i think the  sock thief is back
i can hear rummaging in the drawers







Poets United - Midweek Motif

Sunday, October 6, 2019

Carpe Diem Meditation # 105

waving long grass
all that remains of ancient warriors
trace of dreams

Basho






spirits still linger
of the struggling pioneers
almost 200 years ago

a pall settles
blue skies and sunshine
make no difference

Friday, October 4, 2019

Octpowrimo 2019 Week 2







starts 1:38

Day 8 - scent

October
The Season Of Poetry

scent of a woman
great movie
great tango dancing

oh

that could have been me
too many years  ago

oh   well

perhaps i am exaggerating slightly
she is much more demure
besides i always had a tendency
to lead
to take charge
al pacino  might not like being swung around
like a rag doll
by an aussie outback sheila

ho hum


curled up in bed watching this
in oversized animal print flannellette pyjamas
woolly socks with marmalade boy
a gal  can still dream

sigh

anyway al pacino is blind
so i could  be in with a chance

oh dear


 

 Day 9

A Cinquain

What do you see? 






i see
a huge struggle
to survive here on earth
our progeny will not thank us
good luck!



Day 10

Touch



Vladimir Horowitz ( 1903 - 1989 )


Cinquains


no one
has his deft touch
just inspirational
he will will not pass this way again
farewell

maestro
extraordinaire
you've given us so much
too few have even heard of you
pity


Day 11 - Silence or Noise

Shadorma








city life
rush hour traffic noise
crowds and stress
outback life
peace and quiet with no people
no water either

the silence
of the dying lambs
dead cattle
shrivelled crops
ongoing drought down under
farmers pray for rain




Tuesday, October 1, 2019

OctPoWrimo 2019




Day One

Dark Night Of The Soul


she can still hear
the lonely train whistle 
puncturing the night sadness
clickety clack clickety clack
it sped along
lights in the distance whizzing by
face pressed to the window
hugging her little suitcase
heading for the unknown
no one waved goodbye

Day 2

Changeling


who am i?


this beautiful angelic child
a picture of innocence
must have have been stolen by demons
and substituted with a changeling
causing untold suffering to most of the world

Day 3

Womb





a cosy kitchen
the womb of a home
where life boils and bubbles
with good conversation laughs and drinks
whilst peeling the vegetables


Day 4.

Cage - Pewter Silver or Gold




Michael Leunig-another loser has-been fades into obscurity

some cages
are more comfortable than others
nevertheless
all are  still prisons

freedom is precious
best fly into obscurity
ignoring the taunts of' ' loser '
by  those rattling their expensive chains


Day 5

Doorway - opened or closed




he was always mindful
about caring for his old friends
including them in his good fortune
on his way up the ladder

when he lost his wealth
on his way back down
they were nowhere to be found
all doors were closed to him

life -  the reality version


Day 6

Out Of The Blue



blast from the past
greetings from a hermit
a message from dodo
sent  this pic
from Saint Ninian's cave

it took a visit  to the austere saint's bleak outpost 
in the north sea to prod his memory
still
she was pleased to hear from the extinct bird
he had not forgotten her


a pebble smiley is
a nice celtic 'thought that counts' gesture
however




red roses -
expensive ones
(lots of them:)
uplifts the mood state
to a greater spiritual height
for a blue lady
of frankish papist disposition:)







Day 7

Tongue




this chameleon beauty
can zap a cricket
with its magical tongue
in an instant
a great testament
to the supreme artist and grand designer