Knocking

Health and safety; You're having a laugh!
It's more like people not paying attention.

   More involved in their own little lives
   Waiting for texts from friends, kids and wives

In this world of image, of posing and pretension

   They need their head knocking to create some sense
   But it's unlikely you'd notice any difference

http://www.newstalk.com/Cathedral-relocates-huge-sculpture-after-texting-visitors-butt-heads-with-it

Being Single

Oh it’s hard to be single

On Valentines day

With no-one to cuddle

And no-one to say

“I love you dearly

You are my one

My dearest sweetheart

My honeybun”

Oh it’s hard to be single

And go out for a meal

To see a romantic

2-for-1 deal

With no-one to eat with

No starter to share

And you feel the couples

All around stare

Oh it’s hard to be single

In the age of the “date”

Is it my personality?

Or is it just fate?

To be forever alone

Forever just me

A tag of loneliness

Of which you’ll never be free

Oh it’s hard to be single

On Valentines day

Everyone asks you

“Are you sure you’re not gay?”

You’re letting down family

Letting down friends

And only by pairing

Can you make amends

Single or otherwise? You can still download my Haiku Collection Love and the Valentine

Violence

Lying in bed listening
In the middle of the night
Awoken

The sound of the neighbour
Beating his partner
Broken

The sobs and the grief
And the bitter cries
Pained

Leaving their mark
On my imagination
Stained

A public display
With no attempt at pretence

A tragic drama
Of domestic violence

New Project

Following last year's regular "almost" poem-a-day deluge, I've been quiet for a month on this blog, trying to work out a new project; One that will not take too much time away from my usual day job of being a Dad, especially since a second one is on the way in not too many months.

Anyway after some time of thought and reflection I have decided to put together some collections of Haiku over the coming year. Each collection will have its own subject area and they will be available as PDF downloads.

Here is a link to my downloads page from the blog and as you can see, the first collection is already available.

New collections will appear from time to time on the blog, depending on when I can spare the time to write and post, so please bear with me.

Turning

The year is turning
Switching once more
As one window closes
We open the door

New opportunities
To solve all our ills
If we offer some effort
And focus our wills

We've seen refugees
And more bombing raids
Political posturing
And diplomatic charades

The rich have got richer
All their nests to feather
The poor make do with less
Are we still in it together?

While the climate continues
To throw all it can
To prove that it's changing
And yet still we plan

To burn fossil fuels
To exploit and to frack
The only nature we have
And we won't get it back

But with new beginnings
We always have hope
There's no point in weeping
To hide away and mope

We must use our voices
Stand up and say
Think for the future
And choose another way

We must save this planet
As we must save ourselves
From the hurt we have wrought
And we can't invoke elves

Or Gods to save us
In whatever faiths we hold
There is only us
We must learn to be bold

Why not share an idea
Of peace in our time
Sing it or write it
In prose or in rhyme

And fight for the good
Which we all hold within
Express it, describe it
In a New Year
A new world to begin

Tree

When the seasonal greenery
Struggles to last
It's surely a sign
That Christmas has passed
And if it makes it through
The whole twelve days
It still sits with an air
Of general malaise

You see it browning
You see it wilting
Long arms drooping
And tall head tilting
Losing it's needles
Scatter by scatter
While too heavy baubles
Fall with a clatter

And it almost seems
To be unfair
To put it through
Such arboreal despair
Despite colour in the corner
That it's occupying
Day by day
It's slowly dying

Holidays

It’s the day inbetween

When nothing much goes on

Thegifts have grown boring

The guests have all gone

Still no sign in the air

That there might be snow

Perhaps there’s another sale

To which you can go

But the house is a mess

With the uneaten cake

Still piles of mince pies

And leftover steak

Chocolate wrappers

With wrapping on the floor

And you wonder what caused

That scratch on the door

At least you’ve got work

To go to tomorrow

Though that is a thought

That also brings sorrow

Wouldn’t it be nicer

To have more bank holidays

When the days are much longer

With warming sun’s rays