Tag: The Red Hand Files

The Moving Song – 28th March 2026

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

(body)

There’s a bomb in the carriage,
oblivious to all one’s cares.
Emptying out all the thunder,
with its white and waxy affairs.

(mind)

In the shadow of this fact
one’s thoughts must be defused;
Those tiny beams of light
search for something to be used.

(spirit)

By singing from the heart
all doubt will disappear.
Moving muscles to the beat
is sure to bring good cheer.

Inspired by a combination of this Substack post ‘Body Mind Spirit’ by Deidre Lewis and the Red Hand Files #344

Today’s Daily Stoic poem:

Cowardice As A Design Problem

Life without design is erratic
Chaos ensues without a plan
A cowardly retreat is automatic
If you’ve not readied all you can

At Gethsemane – 12th January 2026

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

Incomplete, abandoned,
we yearn with our five senses;
Midnight-to-midnights found lacking;
universal consequences;

Aching for the beautiful and true,
filling the abyss with stones
God no longer answers
to the rattling of bones.

Inspired by this Red Hand File

Today’s Daily Stoic poem:

The One Path To Serenity

This morning, the sun rose without my asking
Before I lunch, I chose the freshest vegetables
In the afternoon came an uninvited guest
I trust that in the evening, a cool breeze will come

In Silence – 14th October 2025

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 13 Comments

Inspired and paraphrased from the Red Hand Files (again!) #337 and for the GloProWriMo Day 20 prompt:
write a poem informed by musical phrasing or melody that employs some form of soundplay (rhyme, meter, assonance, alliteration). Also, the poem ‘In Evening Air by Theodore Roethke was suggested as an example, and I used the rhyming form, which I found quite pleasant and I think worked very well.

18th Dec 2025 – shared with What’s Going On – Silence

Maybe not a helpful admission,
I’m not sure where I stand these days;
as the ground shifts
exposing each other’s rifts,
it hardens without permission
and uncertainty sings its praise.

The world, beautiful but broken;
my temperament wishes no further harm;
no left or right
or centre might
have, to me, truly spoken
and guided me towards a calm.

My reason searches for the true
to ease the burden of each other’s sorrow;
how easy it is to break,
to forget to give and take;
cautious and careful in what I do
when nothing is certain tomorrow.

Not knowing what I’m talking about;
does the world need to hear that voice?
Listening to all divergent views
makes me ever more confused
so that when still filled with doubt
silence is my choice.

So maybe I just stand with my art,
valuing the deed over the word;
to the fragile flickering spirit bring
a striving for such praise to sing;
At least, it’s a place to start
so that the silence will still be heard.

Charlie Zero The Poet Music picks & Reviews #24 and my quick thoughts:

MockART – Some nice noise here that is keeping my brain active whilst trying to download an upload for my computer so that I can practice guitar again, since something has messed up one of the apps I like to use.  Not sure that I would listen to this at any other time though!

Wet Nurse – Fractured and somewhat scary energy here.  It’s interesting for sure but a bit too disturbing for me these days.  About 20 years ago I would’ve been all over this.

Meira Asher – Interesting punk hip hop that reminds me of some similar weird freaks I met from Japan in the 00s.  I like the more rhythmic tracks over the atmospheric ones.

Half Empty Glasshouse – I have their albums already but had forgotten about them.  Lots of time changes and genre warping.  This is my kinda jam for sure.

Sleepytime Gorilla Museum – ditto

Faith, Hope and Courage – 24th May 2025

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 11 Comments

Constant communiqués of despair
The end of times always kept in mind
The hollow rings of Happy New Year
Distracting us from our daily grind
We become living embodiments
Of the catastrophes we’ve foretold
Trapped within these dark environments
Hopes are fading for the dreams we’re sold

Embolden the heart! Be courageous!
Inspire action to defend the world
Sell, not be sold to, is contagious
Flags of faith, hope and courage unfurled
Hope becomes the energy of change
A radical audacious duty
With optimism, we can arrange
Our thoughts towards a life of beauty

Inspired and paraphrased (one more time) by Nick Cave at The Red Hand Files #308. The title is also a play on words of Nick Cave’s album Faith, Hope and Carnage.
9th Mar 2026 – Shared with Reena’s Xploration Challenge #420

One Man’s Lunch – 10th May 2025

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ Leave a comment

With all our faculties,
some stronger and more keen;
employ these abilities
to stand up and be seen.

Mould our worlds by hand,
all of it fundamental;
so precious and planned,
all our matters are vital.

Whether poison or beauty,
to build or to destroy;
it’s our control of duty,
our reason to employ.

With our imagination,
to enjoy collaboration
for our world’s construction
and sanity’s preservation.

Inspired and paraphrased from the Red Hand Files #315

Cave And Ferry – 19th September 2024

~ shaun tenzenmen ~ 21 Comments

Wet with privilege, a subtle sorrow
No more songs will come
A tuneful whistle on a country drive
All that’s left of the genius one

There is always something
And always nothing too
With little air in between
The difference is the work to do

A satisfied melancholy
A poetic drama ends
Left to wander the grounds
Bumping into friends

Inspired and pilfered from The Red Hand Files #286
12th Dec 2025 – Shared with Poets and Storytellers United #207 – in between

oday I’m feeling:

Really dizzy and out of sorts. I went straight to the hospital but still hadn’t seen a doctor by midday. When I asked, they said that I had to wait for a ‘special’ doctor who only arrives at 1 pm!

My head is also not in a good place right now, either. Wild thoughts of quitting and moving or just sleeping.

Health:

Physical: 5
Mental: 5

Today I’m grateful for:

All the staff who helped me at the hospital. Despite it being frustrating, I don’t think it was anyone’s fault in particular.

The best thing about today was:

Not much I must admit. I did start to feel a little more positive by the evening, so that is something at least.

What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?

I don’t know why things took so long at the hospital today. I got there at nine and finally left at 2.45 pm. I saw a doctor for less than two minutes and was told to come back to see an ENT specialist on Saturday.

Something I learned today?

I should follow up with the staff at the hospital a little quicker. It may only be a coincidence but things only started happening once I asked what was going on.