Not Poetry. Quatrain Verse in English & Swedish. Dagsverser. On the Mundane & the Arcane.
In erstwhile other place
in times more civil
in cultures not so base
did we mope, snivel?
While at our present time & place
feeling entitled to whine
stuck in that all consuming chase:
There’s not enough to call mine!
Chasing hard for material parts
absorbed, clinging to illusion
while ensnared in our empty cold hearts
we waste our lives in delusion
Saplings needn’t travel the world
they grew in place & peace
while men in youth’s folly whirled
in impatient caprice
Tree and man now old, flagging:
while thick foliage, man’s hair thin
Both bent & sorely sagging
tree still a tree, man mere has-been
Do tell why pursue & rush around
when at perfect peace in our own ground?
She left ’Solidarity Among Workers’
of Russian People generous and tough
joined here ‘Me-First Apolitical Shirkers’
eager devour abundant, gleaming stuff
Yana’s road steep, long & hard
on feet, bags & credit card
Ever since setting that noble goal
of Costcoite she’s persisted
been excelling in her newfound role
quick, astute, shrewd & tightfisted
+)
-Costcoite: an ace category shopper at Costco
-Muscovite = in this case our neighbor Yana, formerly of Moscow, where her giggles still echoe in its abandoned streets
Fumbling yet another glass
over hors d’oeuvre platter
spouting platitudes in mass
Spare me such void natter!
Such vain, self absorbed rattle
in verbiage feckless
midst milling about cattle
dressed in tie & necklace
Voices shrill, blaring
breathlessly ‘reporting’
onslaught unsparing
conversation-thwarting
How did we turn admass?
Why so untoward
when a subject impasse
brings silence awkward?
Time’s up, we may leave
just smile & swoon
Hardly cause to grieve
bye, until soon!
+)
-‘reporting’ = here: boorishly droning on about one’s own most mundane doings
Agony fills our bones
while minds racing, our guts churn
like crawling on coarse stones
For change our heavy hearts yearn
Social bonds no longer prized
irreparably frayed
Everything commoditized
trust & manners decayed
In Empire’s Wars & Celeb Cultures
self-entitlement’s fierce fangs bared
turning us into whiny vultures
Only poverty deeply shared
Little of wisdom debated
or of shared humanity
Neighborhoods fearfully gated
in self absorbed vanity
Once perhaps eagles, now wobbly geese
ages passed since we looked strapping
Now spectators of silly & sleaze
in armchairs flopping, tongues flapping
In our sugar & fat fueled rut
guzzling, chomping fast food junk
outwards bulges that beach ball gut
no bounce left for cheery spunk
Not letting inequality
or climate calamity
spoil our fun & frivolity!
Busy on screens, can’t you see?
Rather ‘amusing ourselves to death’
than fighting for working democracy
we’re consuming, wheezing out of breath
in willful ignorant hypocrisy
+)
‘Amusing ourselves to death’ = (1985) book title by Neil Postman
Sally’s nose, prose & fashion
how she’s just too cloying
Frank’s political passion
ain’t he too annoying?
But bothering with affinity
surely pure prickly vanity?
Best left to saints & divinity
not fallible humanity
We shan’t change them: She’ll sally forth
while he’ll keep on thinking he’s Njorth
+)
Njorth = (Njörðr in Norse mythology) god of the sea, winds and prosperity
Why must I pretend poise
in ubiquitous noise?
Vain the hope that racket turns tinny
so seal doors tight, make walls thicker?
Perhaps move away to New Guinea
or keep numbing up with liquor?
Hold the wild bustle!
Lighten the stomp
Muscle the hustle
Muzzle the romp
Please muffle the clang
and curb the harangue!
While we have of course already effectively abandoned our children and theirs by not doing anything that would significantly mitigate the climate collapse we are also now limiting erstwhile parent-child interaction. The following scenes have become routine in our very own neighborhood, viz.:
Toddler:
Being pushed along in my stroller
with Mom & her Chum the Smart Phone
a Connectedness Highest Roller
as well Dexterous Texting Clone
Child:
Got to join on a walk
with my Dad & his Smart Phone
as long as I don’t talk
may listen to his Ring Tone
Dog:
Got to ride in my People’s car
watched them turn Cyber Unknowns
drove erratically bizarre
while on GPS and phones
All Three, in unison:
While we weren’t by spilled coffee burnt
got covered by crumbs of scones
Most relieved that these ‘adults’ weren’t
piloting surveillance drones …
On raids ever niggling
yet again out on foray
ever jolted, wriggling
heading out among moray
Chasing for conveniency
in hoopla unrestrained
granted full leniency
to live lives entertained
You contentious consumer
on shopping paths hallow
doggedly without humor
distracted, stuck callow
You captives of rushing clatter
paying heed to ads’ slick flatter
+)
-moray = family of brightly colored voracious eels, dangerous if provoked; here: ambitious consumers dangerous if impeded