Again

It's the 5am nightmare
Again.
Screams and cries
From the cot
That wake you
From your dreams.
Warmth and softness
Lost.
As you hug
And cajole in the cold
Hardness of the night
Terrors attempt
To close in around you..
As they drift back off
You lie back wide awake
Unable to sleep
Again.

Freezing

Freezing cold on the platform
A chill within the air
The winter winds are rustling through
But as the train pulls in I dare
To dream of a carriage nice and warm
A shelter from the world outside
As I begin on my commute
To work at the end of this ride

But as I embark it feels as if
I'm entering a giant fridge
There's no sign of heat anywhere
Not a bit, not even a smidge
And I sit there watching my hands turn blue
Feeling's gone, my fingers are numb
And strangely I'll wish for overcrowding
The collective warmth of yesterday's scrum

Suck-up

The mother of all suck-ups
How else can it be explained
By the man who once upon a time
Might have become ordained

Once they called him the 'mad monk'
And he must have been insane
To give Prince Phillip a knighthood
What was going through his brain?

These awards are already archaic
Without meaning in our modern life
But at least give them to someone deserving
Not a man with a Queen for a wife

Fireball

Their fires burn
With idealistic passion
Against the freeloaders
Skivers
Work shy

They stoke the flames
Of entrenchment
Poor against poorer
The weak
Vulnerable

They set a blaze
Upon the state
Destroying welfare
Support becomes
Ashes

Until tragedy strikes
And a life goes
Up in a
Fireball
Of their own making

http://www.cheddarvalleygazette.co.uk/Cheddar-Gorge-death-Inquest-human-fireball/story-25972122-detail/story.html

Snowman

Swirling snow floats in flurries
As down towards the ground it hurries

Sheets the pavement in purest white
In children's faces is wide delight

As I tighten the scarf around my throat
The mini-blizzard coats my coat

And though I scamper to shelter as quick as I can
I remain resembling a real snowman

Shortage

Another subsidy for the rich
For the landowners who sit
On their empty homes, their brownfields
Whilst the renters take the hit.

'Affordable' already a phrase
Without meaning; Just a calculation
Without a basis to peoples wages
And a reason to feel frustration.

For those without deposits
On zero contracts, minimum wage
Who want to own their own homes
But will rarely reach that stage.

They say it will bolster building
That more homes will exist
But since only the rich can secure them
A shortage will still persist.

More council homes are needed
And the wealthy should meet the cost
Since time is slipping away until
Generation Rent is truly lost.

Inspired by: http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/feb/01/property-developers-affordable-housing-councils-empty-building

Parasite

A parasite is hidden
Beneath our noses
Between the lawns
And the beds of roses
Up our high streets
And down our lanes
Infecting us all
Taking over our brains
It has infiltrated
Our daily lives
Our husbands have it
So do our wives
Children expect it
When they come of age
People pay to have it
Handing over their wage
Yet it chokes our lungs
Cripples our legs
Blasts our ears
So it really begs
The question - How?
Did it get this far
Being slaves in thrall
To the motor car