Tag: poetry

Think Tank Babies – 18th August 2022

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

A motion tabled, around it went
Carried advice for the government
A cache of dollars were duly spent
In pursuit of a father’s dreams
A place in first must be maintained
The remainder must remain remained
And tough decisions are never explained
All must be not what it seems

The crowd is the gathering place of the weakest; true creation is a solitary act.

Charles Bukowski

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful for the folks around me who provide me with food. I have many options available.

Baby Doll – 17th August 2022

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 1 Comment

Made of plastic with a million others
Boxed and sold to potential mothers
Wrapped in cloth, put in a manger
Idolised when stolen by a stranger
Faith questioned by this random act
The perpetrator is family in fact
Purposes are being slowly revealed
With metaphors that were concealed

Inspired by the first season of TV show The Leftovers

I don’t like work – no man does – but I like what is in the work – the chance to find yourself. Your own reality – for yourself, not for others – what no other man can know. They can only see the mere show and never can tell what it really means.

Joseph Conrad

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful for all the things I learn about myself every day with the challenges I face.

The Week That Was – 28th October 1979

Words Of No Inspiration – 16th August 2022

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

Not very inspired today
Not sure what to say
And I’ve got no choice
I have to do it anyway

Waiting to rejoin the flow
Got to get up and go
I have to get it done
It’s the truth, I know

Go for broke. Always try and do too much. Dispense with safety nets…Aim for the starrs. Keep grinning…Argue with the world.

Salman Rushdie

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful to Nut and Bruno for dropping my cake, bread and breadsticks to me yesterday. I have more food than I can eat at home now!

Fatman report

Explode – 15th August 2022

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

Losing control again, temper rising
So close to the edge, not surprising
A burst of anger blew across the room
And settled into despondent gloom

In the long run, a hierarchical society was only possible on a basis of poverty and ignorance.

George Orwell

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful to get another long weekend. This semester has gone quickly because of all the holidays.

Short Man Syndrome – 14th August 2022

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

Always punching up
Impossible to keep down
Hyperactive bouncing
Like a rabid clown
Always in need of attention
‘Hey, look at me!’
Pushing towards the front
Just so he could see
He’s an annoying bulldog
Doing a stupid dance
What the hell are you doing
Pissing on my pants!?
He’s an annoying bulldog
Doing a stupid dance
Feeling sorry for him
So give him another chance

In a time of destruction, create something: a poem, a parade, a community, a school, a vow, a moral principle; one peaceful moment.

Maxine Hong Kingston

Reincarnate – 13th August 2022

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

As the ground approaches
At an ever-accelerating rate
Recall those bitter words repeated
For others to contemplate
As the halt is impending
Air is forced to evacuate
The authority of heaven
Finally offered no mandate
The expiration of feelings
And thoughts evaporate
A body in a million parts
As the atoms separate
Floating out towards the light
Now there’s no time to be late
Hoping for one last chance
The possibility to reincarnate

Send the message to those who desire to do the same: Speech is free. Lies, you pay for.

Wesley Ball, lawyer at Alex Jones trial

Living In A Story – 12th August 2022

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

We are living in the world of a novel
Where fiction has become all too real
Satisfied within the home of a hovel
And being told how to think and feel

This dystopia goes unrecognised
As we’re distracted with flashing lights
We’re no longer surprised
To find we’ve given up our rights

The man on the screen makes me glad
And the woman, young, beautiful and smooth
Advertise a world that contains no bad
Merely there to comfort and soothe

The Truman Show, The Infinite Jest
Were warnings not to be imitated
But when we put ourselves to the test
That’s exactly what we’ve created

17th May 2024 – Submitted to Ragtag Daily Prompt – Dystopia

People interpret religious texts on the content of their own hearts.

Shane Fang, Facebook comment

Paint It White – 11th August 2022

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

Blocked out, little emotion left inside
No meaning carries a meaning that’s implied
Words left unsaid, let actions speak louder
Paint it all white and sprinkle it with powder
Every town’s memory, slowly being removed
Every complex conspiracy, slowly being disproved
We’re gonna make it right through to the end
Paint it all white to signal the angel to descend

We all believe we are masters in the realms of opinion and reasoning.

Robert Greene

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful for all the food Amy and her parents made that is in my freezer. I can eat cheaply for many days.

Endgame – 10th August 2022

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 4 Comments

Do we become the madness we see around us?
Are we merely acting as we saw the actors perform?
Does Beckett’s England make England Becketts?
The whole world’s a stage of paths trodden worn

We wore our striped pyjamas
As we limped around with a ladder
I can no longer tell if I am he
Or he is me, making me feel sadder

Have you seen my eyes, I’ve never shown
It seems true that you don’t complain
Never wondered to take off the goggles
Slept in and never thought to explain

A blown whistle brings forth a biscuit
And the lid’s stuck back on the bins
No more nature now we’re losing our bloom
Stuck here with each other, forever
– and for all our sins

21st Oct 2024 – Shared with Ragtag Daily Prompt – stripe

Most men are so thoroughly subjective that nothing really interests them but themselves.

Arthur Schopenhauer

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful for the market seller and the tasty tangy mango I got from him. He knows me now.

The Week That Was – 21st October 1979

Wren’s Columns – 9th August 2022

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

Even though it’s only pretend
You will feel my support
Though unrequired in the end
You did it all by yourself
But needed comfort to begin
You learned to trust yourself
And you can do anything

Inspired by the story of Christopher Wren adding two unnecessary columns to a building to satisfy the owner’s desire. Everyone was happy. Also along with the work I’ve been teaching my students that they can improve themselves little by little.

You aren’t a machine with broken parts. You are an animal whose needs are not being met.

Johann Hari

Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful that I can catch up on some video watching whilst doing the ironing. Too many shirts today.