Heatwave

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber 

“Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s need, but not every man’s greed.” – Mahatma Gandhi

“What is the use of a house if you haven’t got a tolerable planet to put it on?” – Henry David Thoreau

“The climate crisis has already been solved. We already have the facts and solutions. All we have to do is wake up and change.” – Greta Thunberg

Cherish the natural world, because you’re a part of it and depend on it.” -  Sir David Attenborough

 Now, much of Europe is in the grip of the most sustained heatwave for fifty years. In London and other parts of the UK, temperatures are forecast to peak tomorrow and/ or the next day at around 40 degrees Celsius, which would be the highest ever recorded here.

In the meantime, those of us who can barely stand even moderate heat, await tomorrow with baited breath, given that a significant number of deaths, directly related to the heatwave, have been reported across southern Europe.

Isn’t it about time we all took those scientists who have been studying climate change for years more seriously instead of being in denial or, worse, treating it as none of our immediate concern?

People matter. The planet matters. The past-present-future of all creatures great and small deserves better, surely, than an endgame that has the potential to reduce it to ashes?

So, what can we all do to, each in their own way, to at least limit climate change …better late than too late…?

HEATWAVE

Apollo, raging at humanity
for breaking faith with a natural world
force fed good intentions
meant to improve quality of life
for native communities 
too busy fighting amongst each other
to let serious thought dwell
on the effects of climate change in a future
too distant to really matter

Apollo, messaging humanity
to have a care when poisoning earth, sea
and air with egos driven
by greed and/ or a desire to get one over
his/ her neighbour 
because appearances matter, prove
that human nature
has the capacity to do better than but wait
on some fruitful turn of fate? 

Apollo, in sheer desperation,
commanded by an Earth Mother driven
to breaking such laws of nature
as have been attended to for centuries
in spite of human vagaries
spilling over landscapes of such poetry
as would have seeing-eyes,
hearing-ears, attend the living, one and all,
a kinder future, heart-and soul

Sun, whose risings, settings,
have marked the acts and contemplations
of generations, for better, worse
or such puzzles to be muddled through
as best we can, tomorrows
always waiting in the wings to see what we
will make or break of it,
whether quality-of-life is taskmaster or slave,
healing power or topical heatwave

Copyright R. N. Taber 2022

Felt Experience, Diary of an 'Other' Self

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As we journey through life, the majority of us remain aware of our surrounding and relate to them accordingly; home, school, workplace... 

In what way ‘accordingly’ though’ given that all aspects of life are subject and vulnerable to change, for better or worse, at any given time? 

We can but do our best, on the face of it at least, to relate and adapt to change if only because common sense tells us that change is all but inevitable, part and parcel of life experience. 

How we feel about various changes in our lives, however, may well affect our perspective, not only on any physical change, but our relationship with everything and everyone it embraces, one way or another. Changes for the better will invariably improve our quality of life, not least for its affecting anyone in it who matters to us. 

Similarly, changes for the worse invariably have the opposite effect, worse still for giving rise to such feelings to which we may not be accustomed and make us feel out of our depth, a felt experience which we may be loath to confide in anyone, if only because – as we see it – it doesn’t reflect well on us. 

Sadly, many of us endure the darker aspects of felt experience alone, struggling against a rising tide of anger, shame and other self-deceptive life forces that needs must find an outlet or ‘target’ if only because it I no more the way of human nature to contain its negatives than to share and celebrate any positives. 

No one, even among close family and friends, can read minds; we can try, yes, but may well only see what we want or expect to see, leaving us none the wiser as to how best we can help someone in any given situation. 

Felt experience can make or break us and we need to share it; sometimes, talking to a stranger can be a good start or writing down how we feel to clear our thoughts sufficiently to help us communicate them, if only to ourselves. Whatever, it has to be a giant leap in helping us see how our own felt experience is affecting others and, hopefully, nudge us into devising a way out of the emotional closet in which we are feeling increasingly desperate. 

Nor do I use the word ‘closet’ lightly, so often associated with LGBT people unable to come to terms with their own felt experience of life, but as true of anyone, whoever and wherever they may be... 

FELT EXPERIENCE, DIARY OF AN ‘OTHER’ SELF 

As a child, I believed in fairies,
guardians of woods in which I’d play
with peers who, too, saw a fairy
in every flower, leaf, blade of grass
in which we trusted to keep us
safe from harm until such a time
as needs must we put aside childish thing
as run pretty rings around us 

Older, I tried hard to believe
in the God of more Sundays than I cared
to count, singing hymns to tunes
I'd often play in my head without words,
sing in my heart with silences
all but breaking it for being burdened so
by the absence of such music as I related to,
but never (quite) as expected 

Older, I tried hard to believe
in myself, for all that I’d plainly lost my way,
no clear idea what to do next,
how to reconcile a passionate inner self
with all but sterile masks it wore
as and when the need would (often) arise
to cast reality aside, magic me an alternative
I might even learn to live with 

Middle age saw me looking back
in more anger than pride for my overcoming
this and that worldly obstacle,
only to render mind-body-spirit a subject
of ridicule to its ‘other’ self
for believing it had found its own way
out of the Maze of Life when it had but begged
its guardians to point the way 

There came a time, I broke free
of life forces shackling me to everyday tasks
essential to survival, if not on terms
acceptable to the ‘other’ self in me, as needy
to find its own way out of its hell
as children hoping that fairies are a reality,
can see any real ‘me’ behind its many life-masks,
even if no one else does... 

Growing old, I look in a mirror
and ask my reflection “Why?” Now and then,
it will even reply, lips moving silently,
heart beating furiously, lashing out at mind
and spirit for abandoning teamwork,
expecting humans to get the better of fairies
by... turning to everyday socio-cultural-religious
and political face masks? 

“Whatever,” says the mirror,
whenever it has my ear, “what’s done is done,
no point in looking back in anger, regret,
sorrow, even fear of any mask or fairy taking
pot-shots at us in some after-life...”
“Earth Mother knows who and what we are,
more likely to judge us, surely, by good seeds sown
than any stones we’ve thrown?” 

Copyright R. N. Taber 2021

Nature v Human Nature (Winner takes All?)

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‘It’s a life for a crust!’ my mother would often exclaim with mixed amusement and stoicism to us kids.

More than half a century on, and growing old, I understand only too well what she meant.

An earlier version of this poem has appeared on the blog before; in 2000, at the turn of the century, it was published in an anthology the same year and has resulted in a number of emails from readers (of all ages) to say how much they can relate to it. Some years on, I have to say I don’t find much changed for the better ... 

Oh, well, c’est la vie.

My maternal grandfather would often say "Better a plodder than a plonker be." Oh, and why not? We plodders are (on the whole) a happy breed if struggling sometimes to rise above the chaos of battles between nature v human nature. We try to make the best of things, refuse to be cowed (for long) by the worst, and trust common sense will (eventually) impose a benign order (of sorts) on our surroundings ... whoever and wherever we may be in a century that has come far, but still has as much to learn about as from nature and human nature, not least regarding the (all-inclusive) art of nurture.

NATURE V HUMAN NATURE (WINNER TAKES ALL?)

Can’t get on a bus, schoolkids

won’t walk half a mile;

stuck on a train, points failure,

(blame the weather);

arrive at work later than usual,

half the staff phoned in sick;

Start to get things done - and

the IT system goes down;

mad rush to meet Management’s

deadline, only to discover

it's been extended yet again;

no relief (or lunch break);

long afternoon, more than ready

to make the Home Run, left

fuming how quirks of modern life

always ganging up on me

Soon, feet up, relaxing (I wish!)

but family strife, no easy life;

a stressful stroll through streets

paved with fool’s gold,

feeling old, and youths sneering

at wrinklies in designer gear;

cyclist hurtling along the pavement

sends shoppers running for cover;

resentment boils over. I stand firm;

cyclist takes a nasty tumble;

a cop across the street rushes over,

takes my details, warns me

I’ll get a letter, says folks my age

really should know better ...

Oh. and when did mind-body-spirit

ever let age get the better of it?

Peace at last on a quiet hill as dusk

settles on this, my cruel city;

world without pity, but so beautiful;

kite flier, taking on a rough wind

with laughter, joy and pride, proof

(as if any needed) of humanity's

predilection for turning a blind eye

and/or deaf ear as and whenever,

the better to give mind-body-spirit

every chance of making good

and breaking free of what 'society'

would have us take for gospel,

since that’s the way it is, we can take

or leave it ... except we can't, won’t,

because humanity has a conscience,

that would have the last word

Much as a swallow will fly warmer climes,

shall the human heart wing kinder times  

Copyright R. N. Taber 2000; 2020

[Note: An earlier version under of this poem first appeared under the title ‘Citizen 2000’ in an anthology, Through Life’s Window, Poetry Today [Forward Press] 2000 and subsequently in Love and Human Remains by R. N. Taber, Assembly Books, 2001.]

T-I-M-E, Charging Up for Change

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber

Oh, but I remember the frumpy fifties so well…as if they were but a few years ago instead of half a century…! The leap in to the 1960 gave us all a welcome shock. Looking back, though, how much do we recall as it really was and how much has been airbrushed along the way by a cult mythology...?

Oh, but where DOES the time go, eh?

T-I-M-E, CHARGING UP FOR CHANGE

Oh, those formal, frumpy fifties!

BBC TV announcers

in evening dress even in the afternoon…

Glued to the radio (hangover

from a bleak wartime) while the likes

of Bronco, Cheyenne, Wells Fargo

and Wagon Train harvest rich myths  

of the old American West

for future generations to look back

with pride, the shame

of Wounded Knee left to Hollywood

with poor excuses

Off ‘n’ away with post-war blues,

we’re looking good…

Enter, skiffle and Lonnie Donegan

before rock and roll began

to take root and Juke Box Jury

woke us all up from days

of ballroom dancing to bold frontiers

of disco (forget the Lone Ranger

and Tonto); Mods and rockers fighting

each other for tabloid headlines,

girls adapting their hemlines to more

than simply fashion…

boys discovering drainpipe trousers

and winkle-picker shoes

Off ‘n’ away with post-war blues,

let the good times roll…

Along came Z-cars, eagerly elbowing out

dear old Dixon of Dock Green

(shortly doomed to bite the dust along

with Bronco and the rest);

the sixties taking over, Beatlemania

on a par with world religions,

politics fair game for anyone free

(supposedly) to indulge controversial

opinions of their own

so long as nothing likely to offend

Cold War ethics among gentlemen spies

and old boy networks

Copyright R. N. Taber 2005; 2014

[Note: An earlier version of this poem appears in  A Feeling For The Quickness Of Time by R. N. Taber, Assembly Books, 2005.] 

In Cherry Blossom Time

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Throughout our winters, most if not all of us look forward to spring, and yet it is not only climate change that the world has to fear, nor does change always mean progress in any context.

IN CHERRY BLOSSOM TIME

Cherry blossom and empty crisp packets

drifting by on a breeze

Empty crisp packets, like lonely people

drifting by on a street

Streets, like lines on the faces of martyrs

drifting by on clouds

Clouds, trying hard not to cry for a world

getting by on crutches

Crutches, supporting old guard politicians

getting by on half lies

Half lies, camouflage for good intentions

getting by for centuries

Centuries, a colourful history of cleaning

other people’s windows

Windows on religions swearing to their fruit

like cherry blossom

Cherry blossom and empty crisp packets

drifting by on a breeze...

Copyright R. N. Taber 2010

[Note: First published in Tracking the Torchbearer by R. N. Taber, Assembly Books,  2012.]

Earth Rage

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber

As a poet whose poetry is archived by the British Library and elsewhere, I try to record major events - including natural disasters - around the world for future reference. Sadly, I have to be selective, but try to write about the worst, especially those that have affected me deeply and cried out for a poem.  I often revert to the villanelle form - as I do here - and can but hope readers will find it effective.

Although these poems are archival now, they serve as reminders all that climate change is no new phenomenon; nature has been sending out warning signals for years. More we should never forget the impact natural disasters have on families and communities around the world; it is not enough to blame nature, humankind needs to accept its own share of blame and take appropriate action before it is too late for any of us 

On March 11^th 2011 an earthquake measuring 9.0 on the Richter scale struck the north-eastern coast of Japan. Although Tokyo is some 200+ miles from the epicentre, it some suffered some damage if incomparable with the utter devastation a Tsunami that quickly followed left in its wake further along the coast. Shocking, live TV coverage inspired the poem.

EARTH RAGE

Nature raging, run amok,
tsunami taking its toll;
Tokyo's reeling in shock

Japan having to take stock
of losses stark and cruel;
nature raging, run amok

Ground rolling, hear it crack,
folks wrestling self-control;
Tokyo's reeling in shock

Across islands of the Pacific,
find fear draping its pall,
nature raging, run amok

As its stunned surrounds rock,
the good earth making a kill,
Tokyo's reeling in shock

Humanity taken a cruel knock,
nor all its wounds soon heal;
nature raging, run amok,
Tokyo's reeling in shock

[London; March 11th 2011]

Copyright R. N. Taber

Floods of Fear

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[Update: From February to April 2019, widespread flash flooding affected large parts of Pakistan, most severely in Balochistan, KPK, Punjab, and other provinces. ... The main areas affected were Turbat, Tump, Nasirabad and Dasht where 300 people were displaced due to the flood.]
Dare I suggest climate change is not as recent a phenomenon as some people are suggesting, not to mention as many others who remain in denial.?


The 2010 Pakistan floods directly affected an estimated 14-20 million people, and killed over 1,700. Nearly 1.1 million homes were damaged or destroyed, and at least 436 health care facilities were destroyed. The floods in Pakistan began in late July 2010, resulting from heavy monsoon rains in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh, Punjab and, Balochistan regions of Pakistan, which affected the Indus River basin.

Nature alone is not to blame. Humanity is polluting its earth, air, seas and rivers, and we need to start taking our individual responsibilities to the planet seriously before it is too late. Too many people don't even recycle waste, even where facilities are provided, and do not see it as their problem; we all need to do what we can...or it will be left to future generations to suffer the consequences and pick up whatever pieces may be left. 

Past-present-future is a continuum for which we all need to shoulder some responsibility instead of shrugging off the likes of climate change as fake news or as of no immediate personal concern to us so let other people clean up our mess...

FLOODS OF FEAR

Floods of fear confronting Pakistan,

indiscriminate, rich and poor;

terrorism no less a threat than rain

Now and then, the worst monsoon

breaks down the strongest door;

floods of fear confronting Pakistan

Pain and grief as the world looks on

(some say could, should do more);

terrorism no less a threat than rain

Those left homeless, no peace plan

for reconstructing their future;

floods of fear confronting Pakistan

Across the border with Afghanistan

some two-way trafficking for sure;

floods of fear confronting Pakistan

Aid on its way, can’t arrive too soon;

nature wreaking sickness and more;

floods of fear confronting Pakistan;

terrorism, no less a threat than rain

Copyright R. N. Taber 2010

INDUS RISING

Swathes of the Indus rising

where homes stood, crops grew,

men, women, children dying

It’s live in tents or nothing

whom the monsoon rains pursue;

swathes of the Indus rising

Millions have lost everything,

aid taking its time to filter through;

men, women, children dying

Cases of cholera spreading

like a terrorist nightmare come true;

swathes of the Indus rising

The stink of bodies floating

where nature’s wrath spares but few;

men, women, children dying

Human spirit near breaking,

yet its promises to mend ringing true;

swathes of the Indus rising;

men, women, children dying

Copyright R. N. Taber 2010

[Note: Both poems appear in Tracking the Torchbearer by R. N. Taber, Assembly Books, 2012.]

[

Time, Critic-cum-Tallyman

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber

I wrote an earlier and significantly different version of this poem for a collection published in 2010. So why revise it nearly ten years later? You may well ask, and I will do my best to make the case not only for for its revision but for having revised many poems that appear in my collections between 2001-2012.

Our perspectives on and attitudes towards life and people  change as time passes, perhaps not radically, but significantly all the same. You only have to look at political correctness; what was tolerated - even if not acceptable - years ago  is now considered abuse; racism and sexism are but two examples, never acceptable but once tolerated. Even now, there are often huge discrepancies as to what is politically incorrect and what is not, often depending on the context in which something is said/interpreted/misinterpreted and/ or the person who says it. It is one reason why I object to people being taken to task for politically incorrect behaviour years ago when it did not have anywhere near as high a profile as it rightly does now;  it doesn't mean that a person was right to say or do whatever at the time, but society, too, has to take its share of responsibility for not taking that person to task then rather than using it as a weapon against them years later.

Language and the use of language changes alongside our perceptions on all manner of issues. Climate change is another example; now getting the high profile it deserves, but still dismissed by some as a fairy story or 'fake news'. Ordinary people like me cannot help but become confused sometimes, and this confusion sometimes comes through in what they say - or write - at any given moment in time; by the time it is made public, circumstances may have caused hem us to have a change of mind and heart. The point being, they genuinely believed whatever they said or wrote at the time; even more to the point, perhaps, is that they were satisfied at the time with heir choice of words.

There is always, of course, the hope that we become better speakers/writers the more we practise either craft or both.

In poetry especially, titles are so important too.I have to confess I struggle with titles. Interestingly, I have changed the title of a poem that hasn't gone down too well with readers and - without changing a word of the poem itself - hey, presto, it attracts significantly more readers and favourable feedback.

There will always be some who don't like what we say or do, for whatever reason, and that is human nature; no problem there so long as the critic is prepared to engage with the writer/speaker rather than seize upon one word or sentence and proceed to attack that, rather than take in the whole. As I have said many times, many parts make a whole, but it is the whole that counts; the parts may well be critically interpreted separately, but should always replaced.in the context of that same whole.

Such is human nature and the complexity of mind-body-spirit, that we are too often inclined to mistake one or more parts of a person for their whole; a whole that is not always a certainty; as such, can it not be forgiven for being  no less susceptible to change than  any uncertainty, feeling its way though the maze that is life - and the range of emotions it invariably invokes - at any age or given moment in time, no matter what our ethnicity, culture, politics, social background or religion...?

TIME, CRITIC-CUM-TALLYMAN

No impartial critic of old age,

(performance s-l-o-w-i--n-g)

Time's remit, clearing the stage

Letting slip how life’s last page

guarantees no happy ending,

no impartial critic of old age

Like a songbird kept in a cage

see humanity flex a wing;

Time's remit, clearing the stage

Earth, driven to express outrage

for an inhumanity enduring,

no impartial critic of old age

Proving neither apathy nor rage

a true template for living,

Time's remit, clearing the stage

Humanity (still) acting The Sage,
its poetry-prose but reworking;

no impartial critic of old age, 

Time’s remit, clearing the stage

Copyright R. N. Taber 2019

[Note: An earlier version of this poem appears under the title ‘By Way of Marking Old Age’in On the Battlefields of Love by R. N. Taber, Assembly Books, 2010.]

Nature v Human Nature, Battle Royal

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"Autumn's nearly over, and who's ready for winter? Not me!" exclaimed a neighbour the other day, adding, " ...but who's ever ready for any change for the worse,"he asked with a wry grin, then "We can but take it in our stride, I guess, and hope for the best..."

I refrained from saying that 'hoping or the best' may well - literally - be the death of humankind if we don't all get our act together sooner rather than later regarding climate - not just seasonal - changes across the globe. We've had this conversation before. He is convinced Donald Trump had his finger on the pulse when he dismissed the idea of climate change as fake news, scaremongering, intended to make Big Business feel guilty and think again about just how it continues to amass its millions.

Climate activist,  Greta Thunberg, a Swedish teenagers has recently made world headlines by going 'on'strike' from school as part of a strategy to emphasise the concerns of young people worldwide regarding climate change. She was invited to speak at a world conference on climate change and  succeeded in ruffling many a politician's feathers with her blunt, no-nonsense approach to a subject increasingly close to many people's hearts, especially the young,given that it is their futures with which our political ,betters, insist on playing Russian roulette.

While I applaud this young woman's stand on climate change, and wish her well, I also hope she does not neglect her schooling for too long.  Education is not only the key to exposing ignorance, it is also  the key to power; the latter is necessary if we want to make a difference in real rather than rhetorical
terms. The Here-and-Now is all about immediacy, especially for the young as I well recall, albeit from a distance of some sixty years; pointing it in the right direction is one thing, though, steering it there is another challenge altogether. The person at the helm needs to be clearly focused at every turn of the wheel on what he or she is doing, and why. No one is going to give a fifteen year-old girl a turn at that wheel. All the feisty spirit and good intentions in the world are no substitute for experience, and that falls under the remit of a good education, the more authoritative the better, to take us to a position of power; only then do we stand any chance of grabbing the wheel. It can be a long haul to get there, and it's a wise person who not only starts young but also Education as both mentor and ally.

If hope springs eternal, it is on the energy of youth that it best thrives. Hopefully, more like-minded people like Greta will see their way to positioning themselves where they can make actions speak louder than words; it is their future in the balance, after all. The tragedy is, that many if not most of us in any Here-and-Now cannot or will not see further than our own personal space.

Whatever, there is no room for apathy, and this Here-and-Now needs to show it can move forward, in every sense of the word, not only by way of invention and capability, but also by actively engaging with the greater among its leading players, he or she most trusted to steer the safer course.

My late mother once told me (40+ years ago, when climate change was barely on anyone's agenda) that I should always respect nature. "Earth Mother," she said, like any parent, will fight to the death to save her children, and She is no mean adversary. Anyone who thinks we can continue destroying forests, polluting the seas and killing animals to satisfy dietary preferences and fashion egos ... well, if you ask me, they and all of us are in for a rude awakening one of these days ..."

NATURE v HUMAN NATURE, BATTLE ROYAL

Patch of sky, a brilliant blue
among autumn leaves of red and gold
marking nature's 'live' show
for seeing eye and listening ear
to share one last fling
of a year's fruitfulness before winter
comes (for better, for worse)

Clouds gathering, anxious
not to play second fiddle to a spectacle.
of bright silvery sunlight,
like tears in time's eye, a curtain
sure to fall yet anxious
to be seen entering into the feisty spirit
of things, no missing out

Curtain down on autumn's
show of defiance meant to drive home
its alliance with all things
bright and beautiful, all creatures
great and small, promising
renewal despite a winter as certain to take
its toll as snow sure to fall

Barely have autumn's players
taken a last bow than a cruel north wind,
come to see them on their way,
stirs an out-of-sight, out-of-mind ethos
intended to undermine
any mind-body-spirit that might see itself
as the greater life force

Nature, though, is not yet done
with us, relying on its evergreens to bring
to mind its promises, the likes
of robin redbreast to keep eyes and ears
alert to that same spirit
of hopeful discontent that has seen humanity
rise above its worst winters

Curtain rising, all in due course,
but what is this? An empty stage, no players
rehearsed to act out another cycle
of life personifying humankind's attention
to nurture while promoting
a well-meaningfulness, stage name 'Progress'
for want of a better moniker

It is in the nature of humankind
to improve its lot, no matter the cost, whatever
it takes, but plenty signs already
of nature's matching any human spirit,
consequences for consequences,
cost for cost, season for season, for better
or worse, all things considered


Copyright R. N. Taber 2019

Entries in a (Human) Nature Diary

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Many people - even some in high places who should know better - continue to insist that climate change is scaremongering, fake news or a ploy to distract the path of progress from serving certain business interest enabling  the rich to get even richer while the poor are left struggling to survive for being unable to afford either a healthy diet or take advantage of some brilliant health project to save the world. but likely to cost the earth.

There is scientific evidence- not to mention a rising human death toll -  that global weather patterns  are changing, yet still we hear views along the lines of "That may well be the case, but there's nothing much I can do about it. Let someone else take responsibility, politicians for example.They are elected to serve out best interests so...let them get on with it and see us all safe rather than sorry."

Nothing you or I can do about it? On our own, no, but if people were actively encouraged to play their parts, this sorry world of ours just might be in with an even chance of surviving the worst. Don't we owe it to future generations to make sure they have a future, for goodness sake? I hear religious people saying we should not worry because, whatever happens, this or that dogma assures us God will see us right. Wrong. While I do not subscribe to any religion, nor can I envisage any God seeing humankind right for (largely) choosing to justify its own wrongs along the lines of "Oh, well, that's life."

Me? I do what I can, and yes, it is nowhere near enough, but if everyone did what they could that would make a real difference. As it is, many people don't even bother to recycle properly even where their Local Authority provides the means. Car engines are left running, while their owners shop at stores within easy walking distance from where they live. Whatever happened to walking, by the way, just for the pleasure of it? As someone with mobility problems so need a walking stick, I really miss it. Mind you, the stick appears to be invisible to the push 'n' shove brigade whether I am walking or using public transport. Or maybe they are right, after all, who tell us - that's life...?

Hamlet battles with his conscience in the famous soliloquy, 'To be or not to be...'. Dare I suggest, Do or Die, that is the question with which the human race needs must wrestle with its conscience?

Oh, but enough said, I suspect, if not more than enough of a rant for one post...

ENTRIES IN A (HUMAN) NATURE 

Subtle changes in autumnal light
are closing in on gardens countrywide
as the hands of its clocks
signal the passing of a lovely evening
into multifarious shades of grey

Less subtle, sounds of trudging feet
as the homeless seek a place to rest awhile
(perchance to sleep)
as clocks in the head tick off another day
of someone's battling to get a life

Darker shades of grey, closing in
on gardens countrywide, signal its birds
to sleep, leave nightingales
singing of peace and love take the strain
of falling on deaf ears

Gone black now, shades of autumn
surrendering to the dark of night, no stars
in the sky nor even a moon
able to penetrate a thick blanket of cloud,
heavens closed for repairs

No shelter available a homeless man
other than the grubby porch of a shop left
empty for several years,
profitable enough once, till business rates
demanding an unfair cut

Ah, but moon and stars forcing an entry,
not to be put to shame by such street lights
as have escaped vandals;
the homeless man being led out of the cold
by volunteer charity workers

Such unsubtle changes in day and night
as closing in on wildlife habitats worldwide,
guide the hands of its clocks,
signal a need for change, home and abroad,
before time runs out for us all

Will you take us in, old moon-with-a-grin,
make way for a new tech copycat Noah's Ark
long, long before then?
Dare a world where progress is everything,

risk being left with nothing?

Subtle changes in autumnal light close in

on gardens worldwide, the hands of clock faces

covering human eyes

that will not see, any ears that will not hear,

for fear of having to do or die

Copyright R. N. Taber, 2019

Pleading for the Planet

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber

[Update : July 30th 2019: We are still reeling from a week of very hot temperatures here in the UK, worse in other parts of Europe. Naturally, people have rushed to the seaside. However, there is no excuse for the appalling state of some  beaches - litter strewed as far as the eye can see - where those responsible simply could not be bothered to take it home and dispose of it there or at least wait until they could find a litter bin. Whatever happened to social conscience? We are polluting our seas, killing off and causing pain to sea creatures who, sadly, have no say in the matter. Until we all start acting more responsibly, it is not only climate change that will damage civilization as we know it, possibly if not probably beyond repair.]

Many if not most of us take nature for granted and use it to our own advantage at every opportunity as if we have every right to do so.

Meanwhile, I suspect Earth Mother whispers much the same in many an inner ear. Ah, but, hey, anyone listening…? Whose conscience pricking them for taking social responsibility so lightly, if at all?

Who is the guardian of whom, I wonder? We of nature or nature of us? Better, surely, that we work with rather than against each other...?

PLEADING FOR THE PLANET

Listen to the rain

telling tales on people

killing each other

Listen to the trees

telling tales on people
disrespecting them

Listen to the birds

telling tales on people

shooting them down

Listen to the fishes

telling tales on people

poisoning the seas

Listen to the worms

telling tales on people

doctoring the soil

Listen to the wind

telling tales of people

on borrowed time

Listen to the people

pleading for the planet

before it’s too late

Copyright R. N. Taber 2015

Global Warnings

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber

Most if not all of us fancy we see hear voices in the wind from time to time,. Maybe we should  pause and make time to listen...  

Fanciful, you say?  Yes, of course, but sometimes what we digest can do us a whole lot of good…so long as we can keep it down  rather than throw it up because we feel guilty for fancying it in the first place. It is high time we treated the natural world with the respect it deserves, not as a communal rubbish bin; nor killing vanishing species, for whatever reason, without putting safeguards in place to ensure their survival. Humankind has a collective responsibility towards all nature or Earth Mother will take the ultimate revenge, and it may well be the likes of you and me will not be found among any survivors 

GLOBAL WARNINGS

Listen to the rain

telling tales on people

running for cover

Listen to the trees

telling tales on people.

cutting to the quick

Listen to the birds

telling tales on people

shooting them down

Listen to the fishes

telling tales on people

poisoning the seas

Listen to the worms

telling tales on people

doctoring the soil

Listen to the wind

telling tales of people

on life support

Listen to the people

marching for the planet

while we still can

Copyright R. N. Taber 2010

The Usual Suspects

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber

Today’s poem has not appeared on the blog since 2008. Given the results of the latest European summit during which President Sarkozy of France and Chancellor Merkel of Germany appear to have succeeded in marginalising Britain from the rest of Europe, at least in the short term, its title may seem appropriate.

It is important that Britain should not be sidelined while fiscal discussions on the survival of the Eurozone take place. It is all very well for Sarkozy, Merkel and other countries to argue that Britain cannot have its cake and eat it, but they are glad enough of our huge monetary as well as political contribution to the EEC which, as I understand it, will continue anyway.

The Eurozone is a mess, and that isn’t Britain’s fault. David Cameron’s demands to protect the City of London from those who are to blame were not unreasonable. If ever the Politics of Cain was given its head, it appears to be now.

I love Europe, but cannot say the same for its various Governments. Mind you, I am not a political animal, and that often goes for my own Government too. My support for David Cameron in this instance is not an endorsement for British politics as a whole.

As far as I can see, there is not one giant on the British political scene to whom the electorate can point and say, ‘Yes! That person has my vote (regardless of their Party) because I feel I can trust him or her and they know what they are doing,’

The Germans are fortunate to have Chancellor Merkel at the helm; I may not agree with her, but she has a strong sense of political direction and integrity, and sticks to her guns. It is also clear that she is one of the few European leaders who has not only her country's best interests at heart in resolving the present crisis in Europe, but Europe's too. The rest rely (far) too much on rhetoric.

I admire Angela Merkel, while I cannot say the same for the leaders of France and Italy. As for the rest, especially Greece, well...Enough said.

And is the rest of the world in any position to judge?

THE USUAL SUSPECTS

Chains dragging on hands and feet,

shabby grey vines under a three-line whip

demanding satisfaction in the best

interests of the nation, a well-paid-for

education

Casualties of demonstrations against

the best intentions of well-heeled maestros

better schooled (indeed) to take a lead

ostensibly for a common good, knocking

on wood

Let the punishment fit the crime

else a whiff of success rushing to the head,

wins a prime TV slot, makes capital

out of it (if but a reprieve) while shooting

up the stock market

Gold stars for a job well done and liberties

taken, whistle blowers exposed, co-operation

(the key, surely?) sparing us anarchy

and mass destruction while not forgetting

indigenous reparation

Call out the dogs, round up any strays,

keep a weather eye on rebels for ‘los’t causes

lest they get it right, turn one-to-one

into three times three as well as re-inventing

our ABC

Copyright R. N. Taber 2004; 2011

[Note: An earlier version of this poem appears in The Third Eye by R. N. Taber, Assembly Books, 2004.]

Woodlanders

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber

This poem first appeared on the blog in August 2008. It reflects a passion for nature that I trust will never leave me, not least because I associate it with everyone and everything I have ever loved.

Maybe it's the poet in me but I have always felt that, whatever our sex or sexuality, there is a timeless quality about love that cannot help but bring and keep us ever closer to nature. Moreover, although I subscribe to no religion, nor do I believe that relationship ends with death if only because spring always follows winter ...

While I recognise the need to create space to satisfy the housing needs of an ever growing population, deforestation is not only an attack on, it fails to take into account that we need our trees or one day there may well be no need to house any of us; global warming will take care of that.  Trees are one of our greatest allies in our battle against climate change, a battle for which humankind has only itself to blame.

WOODLANDERS

Memories, dancing

on the skin, like a gypsy

tambourine;

the two of us making love

on a battered

trench coat;

swallows nesting above

with concerns

of their own

though, unlike ours,

answerable

to none;

Earth’s music, a glorious

symphony, dying notes

no tragedy,

though we can

but snatch

at time

with child hands delighting

in the picking

of bluebells,

applauding the first

flight of baby

swallows,

sharing nature’s rapture

that will forever

endure

Copyright R. N. Taber 2002; 2016

[Note: This poem has been slightly revised since it first appeared in First Person Plural by R. N. Taber, Assembly Books, 2002.]

Mind-Body-Spirit, Humanity's Flexible Friend

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber

Someone recently commented to me that, “I have no problem with gay people as such. But, like all those who choose to flout convention, they are attention seekers and would probably change their tune quick enough if they didn’t get any.”

I couldn’t believe my ears, especially as it was clear the guy was sincere. I put to him that sexuality is in the genes and has nothing to do with deliberately choosing to flout convention or be a focus of attention.

He would have none of it. “Where would society be without its conventions,” he demanded. “Without golden rules to live by, you’d have anarchy.”

Funny, I had never thought of myself as an anarchist…until now! Yes, of course we need golden rules to live by. At the same time, thank goodness for some golden exceptions, among which sexuality is but one ...

'Conventional people are roused to fury by departures from convention, largely because they regard such departures as a criticism of themselves.' – Bertrand Russell 

“Few people are capable of expressing with equanimity opinions which differ from the prejudices of their social environment. Most people are incapable of forming such opinions." – Albert Einstein (Essay to Leo Baeck, 1953)

"It is not the strongest of the species that survives nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one   that is most adaptable to change." - Charles Darwin

MIND-BODY-SPIRIT, HUMANITY'S FLEXIBLE FRIEND

I know my place, would teach

others, though some refuse to learn,

take me for an enemy, refuse

to see I have their well-being at heart,

would prefer not to toss them

like flotsam and jetsam on such waves

as mother-god Society enjoys

making for those who dare question

if its integrity fit for purpose

I know my place, would teach

others to know theirs, better by far

to tread in footprints already

leading the way across snow and ice

than take another, untested path,

making out it will lead somewhere

when there’s no real guarantee

it will lead anywhere at all, followers

as like as not heading for a fall

I know my place, would plead

with others to know theirs, trusting

to be led by my moral compass

into the quiet waters of expediency,

leaving politics and religions

free to hoist colours flapping madly

in a breeze, rightly keen to please,

condemning certain rites of sexuality

likely to put humanity on the spot

My place, rejecting any re-invention

of society's old stand-by, convention

Copyright R. N. Taber, 2010; 2016