The Track – 14th April 2026

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 8 Comments

Once you were a garbage dump,
then covered over with soil,
You became a perfect playground,
that only time would spoil.

“Burty monghead!“

Bored kids became opportune,
building jumps and berms,
Weaving in and out of the trees,
navigating tricky turns.

“Chinny rack-on!“

At night great fires were built
and danger was closely tested,
As boredom lead to discovery
with all our effort invested.

“Muz twang!“

We dug a hole eight feet down
and covered it over with branches,
Camping and drinking underage,
partying through teenage chances.

“Crabby dareya!“

As time went on we all moved away
and the track fell into disrepair,
But I’ll always remember those times
of laughter and joy that we had there.

Written for GloPoWriMo Day 13:
Try your hand today at writing your own poem about a remembered, cherished landscape.

As kids, we got up to a lot of monkey business in our village and ended up with a nightly drive through from the police just to check in on us. The track was a mini-refuge where we were mostly concealed from prying eyes. At first, it was a BMX track and then as we grew into motorbikes, we tested each other to see who could jump the furthest and highest. The next generation of kids after us was quite tame in comparison, perhaps with the rising influence of video games keeping them indoors. Boredom was the best – we had such fun.
The odd phrases in the poem will only be understood by the few of us involved, somewhat our own colloquialisms.

Today’s Daily Stoic poem:

Becoming An Expert In What Matters

We get very good at what we’re paid to do
But do those things contain any value?
Of all the many things you know
Are there any to help your children grow?

No Salvation – 12th April 2026

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment


You are not the saviour

The world needs saving from you

Get out of the picture

What business is it of yours?

Inspired and paraphrased from a quote by Sri Nisargadatta

Question: Is there no salvation for the world?
Maharaj: What business have you saving the world, when all the world needs is to be saved from you? Get out of the picture and see whether there is anything left to save.

Today’s Daily Stoic poem:

Reject Tantalising Gifts

Would you reject the flood of fortune’s gifts?
Is it something that your philosophy resists?
The new and shiny can become awful traps
Leading us towards a devastating collapse

The Key Is Art – 11th April 2026

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

An erasure poem using text from the condescending and unreadable “The Chinese Have A Word For It” which I duly decided was only worth cutting up and using for this purpose.

I don’t know how to get WordPress to format text the way I would like so have added a picture at the top of the post, followed by the original text and below, text that can be cut and paste.

Key in the war
500 business principles
grasped the bible

When derisive laughter
import a reflected perspective

The appropriate war requires the management art
vital death; the road essential
the under thirteen

Each one is vital

success;

The principle planning
first that can

While equal on flex
it makes shapes
ground by enemy
as constant war
constant; the victorious divine

Today’s Daily Stoic poem:

If You Want To Learn, Be Humble

It’s impossible for a person to begin
To learn what they think they already know
If one wishes to get to the bottom of everything
It’s time to make a start on letting go

Skittering – 10th April 2026

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 1 Comment

I am the king!
I’m a veteran!
For 400 million years
In the order of Blattodea.

Shedding nymph skins
Over a year of omnivorous nights.
Breaking down your decay
Into nutrients for our homes.

When you are ash and memory,
Footnotes in the soil,
I’ll still be here, one antenna raised,
Skittering from the sun.

Written for GloPoWriMo 2026 – Day 9:
try writing your own poem in the voice of an animal
“I am the king” is borrowed from The Birthday Party’s ‘Junk Yard’
‘I’m a veteran’ paraphrased from the Volcano Suns ‘Veteran’

Today’s Daily Stoic poem:

Judgments Cause Disturbance

The perceiving eye gives supposed meaning
Making judgments without screening
But the observing eye only sees what is
Simple, inanimate and objective

Interpolation – 9th April 2026

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 20 Comments

The word cracks once,
 “Ceasefire!”
A fish bone lodges in a gasping throat
 but below, the fuses sputter: more wire, more fire,
 the relentless drums of war’s dark choir.

“Ceasefire!”
 – a child’s chalk-drawn heart,
 fading on a smoke-choked boulevard.
The sniper reloads to the lullaby’s lie,
 innocence fades, and children die.

“Ceasefire!”
 says the treaty ink,
 still wet, and bleeding into the desert sand.
The general’s watch ticks, a relentless drone,
 overrun, smashed upon the bloodied stone.

“Ceasefire!”
 a mother’s whisper,
 stitched into a flak-vest’s hollow glow.
The drone’s low hum, a discordant hymn,
 targeted through the night’s darkened brim.

“Ceasefire!”
 carves the chaplain’s tongue,
 while the armoury turns its key.
Counting shells like rosaries, again,
 the earth remembers its red, relentless stain.

On the evening news once more,
 “Ceasefire!”
 a graphic, three seconds, soon buried in mirth.
The bomb dreams of a birthday’s cheer,
while peace remains distant and fragile here.

But let the untouched voices rise,
 through the static and blustering press.
Not for victory,
 but the peace we desire,
– “Ceasefire.”

Shared with dVerse Poetics – imperative and GloPoWriMo 2026 Day 8:
use a simple phrase repeatedly, and then make statements that invert or contradict that phrase.
Current events made this too easy!

Today’s Daily Stoic poem

Test Your Impressions

A harsh impression is all you are
And not at all what you appear to be
I’ll not entertain you so far
If not in my control – you mean nothing to me

Skipping Bones – 8th April 2026

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 25 Comments

Rag and bone,
A skipping stone
My, my, my,
How you’ve grown,
Bone and rag,
A punching bag,
Now, now, now,
Nag, nag, nag,
White flag flown,
Starts to sag,
Jump up and down,
Get off your phone,
Give the dog a bone,

Rag….

Shared with dVerse Quadrille #245 – bone and GloPoWriMo 2026 – Day 7:
write your own poem that emulates skipping/clapping songs – something to snap, clap, and jump around to.

Today’s Daily Stoic poem:

The Costs Of Accepting Counterfeits

We always test that money is real
Yet fail to test our own assumptions
If your friend believes, it will appeal
But only act on tested constructions

April 6th And Other Illusions – 7th April 2026

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 8 Comments

We’re all weird,
      and it’s a weird world,
held together
      by shoestrings and bubblegum.

What did I dream last night
      when I was awake?
I know that I was there
      and those things happened,
but try explaining that
      to my psychiatrist.

The farmer burns his fields
      and the wind blows my way.
I want to get high on helium
      and bloody his face.

What did I dream last night
      when I was awake?
A dog in a mask
      chasing a cat with leukaemia…
Wait!
      That actually did happen.

There was another April 6th 2026
       but it wasn’t a Groundhog Day.
No parallel universe,
       just another April 6th 2026.

What did I dream last night
      when I was awake?
I wanted to sleep badly,
      but I was facing resistance
from the soggy pillow
      and my crooked neck.

69 kph through a red light,
      getting frisky on a motorbike.
I told her don’t grow up too quickly,
      but she was busy taking selfies.

What did I dream last night
      when I was awake?
There’s a fine line between
      what is real and what is acceptable.
All this happened,
      more or less.

Shared with GloPoWriMo 2026 – Day 6:
try writing with a breezy, conversational tone, while including at least one thing that could only happen in a dream.

Also written for Punam’s dVerse prompt from a couple of months ago, utilising the first line of a book as the last line of a poem: “All this happened, more or less.” Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut

All of this happened and all of it was dreamt.

Today’s Daily Stoic poem:

Expect To Change Your Opinions

Honour what you don’t know
You are not so smart and wise
Everyone has the room to grow
Arrogance is where opinion cries

Mr Narcissist – 6th April 2026

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 1 Comment

He’s always wearing a smile
An open door into his world
As if a white flag is unfurled
He hopes that you’ll stay a while

His words come in perfect measure
Offers you the last biscuit of the pack
Yet he’ll whisper behind your back
That you only bring him displeasure

He’s a dark empath; it is clear
With two faces, only one is for show
A narcissist from head to toe
Every word uttered is insincere

Once uncovered, he mounts an attack
To satisfy his ego and to explain
To the few of his friends who remain
That he will never ever turn back

Once his last friend disappears
He’ll claim it’s everyone’s fault
Now there’s none left to hear the result
The mirror’s been cracked all these years

Shared with GloPoWriMo 2026 – Day 5:
write a poem in which you talk about disliking something

While the dislike of a narcissist is not surprising, it often is to others who haven’t yet seen through the facade.

Today’s Daily Stoic poem:

Prepare Yourself For Negativity

Busybodies, liars, ingrates and cranks
Are you ready for the negative jerk?
Be patient, forgive, even give thanks
Put your philosophy forward, to work

Under The Cover – 5th April 2026

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 24 Comments

Beyond the paragraphs and stanzas
Where stories start being told
Round campfires, on verandahs
Ideas – like origami – unfold

Within each sentence, there emerges
Lines flowing skywards from the soul
Where sunshine and saccharine diverges
To tally what the parts withhold

Under the phrase, where the weight lightens
Adjectives get detached from their nouns
Order is loosened; or disorder tightens
Dissected from their objects’ surrounds

Inside each word that’s to be announced
Where every breath becomes considered
Accents distort how it’s all pronounced
Not always intended as delivered

Beneath every syllable assessed
Meaning flickers in recognition
Beyond one thing that’s being expressed
The mastery of imprecision

Below the phoneme, perhaps that’s where to start
Where the true heart of the story lies
Put back together after being pulled apart
Ambivalence is where the author dies

Shared with W3 #205 – Beneath The Surface

Today’s Daily Stoic poem:

Trust, But Verify

Let me see who you are, where you are from
Let me put you to the test
Despite our experience, we may still be wrong
Verification is for the best