Growing Up

The clouds are white, the sky is blue.
The grass is green, the trees are too.
Big yellow sun and silver rain.
You'll not see things this way again.

You go to school, then bigger school
then on to college, you're no fool.
You want to rise above the mob.
You want to get that better job.

You live to work, not work to live
your job takes all you have to give.
You have a house, you have a wife.
You have some kids that share your life.

You slow it down, back off, relax
The more you earn, the more they'll tax
You have it all, your heart's desire
you take up golf and then retire.

But treasure friends for they will die.
Your wife will go and so will I.
Your kids will live lives of their own
connected only by a phone.

And you'll get older day by day.
Your eyes will dim and hair will grey.
Your mind will weaken by degree
'til finally at last you'll see

The clouds are white, the sky is blue.
The grass is green, the trees are too.
Big yellow sun and silver rain.
Your childhood days have come again.

Olives

They put olives on my pizza, I don't like them
now my whole lunch is ruined don't you see
for I never learned the knack
of sending products back
when they don't match with what they ought to be

So I'll eat around the ghastly green invaders
I'm somewhat picky I have to confess
and at the waitresses appeal
of  'did you enjoy your meal?'
being British I will smile and answer yes

But my plate will give the lie to that assertion
the evidence is plain for all to see
for it looks like a disaster
and the mess that remains after
an explosion in a pizza factory

A Day

Seven o'clock to London Waterloo
across the bridge and take the district line
Every morning this is what I do
Travelling to Whitechapel by nine

Then in the evening back the way I came
ride the tube then take the train back home
My kids don't know my face, just know my name
I read them stories through my mobile phone

This is the measure of a modern life
Four hours back and forth in every day
Nine hours in the office, full of strife
Fewer hours at home, too tired to play

Then finally it's over I've retired
More time to spend with family I say
My kids have grown and left, the dog's expired
My wife's a stranger,
what to fill each day?

Tiger Life

She stalks the street in tiger stripes
and fingernails like claws
With Cat's eye contact lenses in
she gives the ladies cause
to wonder what this creature is
that's slinking past them now
and just to make it wierder still
she give a loud miaow
Yet after going home to change
she lives a secret life
When rid of rings and claws and things
she is the vicar's wife

Critics All are Blind

A picture paints a thousand words
but what words do you see
Are they the same words that I saw
d'you see the same as me.
I paint impressions of this world
but feelings interfere
though my emotions paint the words
my truth may not be clear.
So the expert who sees my words
and translates for the crowd
sees through the filter of his mind
and reads his thoughts out loud.
And so what'ere the expert says
you make up your own mind,
it's only worth what someone pays,
I paint for pleasure not for praise,
a thousand words a poet says,
and critics all are blind.

The One for Me

You were the one for me but didn't know.
I couldn't tell you, couldn't take the chance.
For your heart rested elsewhere, and the glow
in your eyes did another soul entrance.
And so I suffered silent day by day
as your happiness cut me like a knife
'til I could stand no more and ran away
to live a safer solitary life.

I didn't see you for a year or two.
I changed my life, my job, I moved away.
My pain was much reduced, I felt less blue
until I bumped into you on that day.
A well remembered scent disturbed my calm
a little kiss of cheek to satin cheek
a gentle touch, your hand upon my arm
and finally I found the words to speak

You are my life, I said, my raison d'etre
without you all is tedious and grey.
You are my love, my heart and soul et cetera.
You are the sun that brings my summer's day
You are the moon that shines in velvet darkness
You are a shooting star across the sky
Your beauty makes the greatest art seem artless
and I will love you 'til the day I die.

So finally emotions dam had broken
my pent up feelings burst upon your ears
I looked to you for some small sign or token
but couldn't see through rising floods of tears
But not just my tears, your tears too were flowing
we stood there in the street in such a mess
awash with tears of happiness from knowing
the answer to all questions asked was "Yes"

A Broken Heart

An aching head may pound today
but by tomorrow will be gone.
A broken heart won't go away
just linger on and on and on.

Though Aspirin will do its part
(take two to cure your aching head)
enough Aspirin to mend your heart
is quite enough to make you DEAD.

Geeks & Nerds

I spent the day with geeks and nerds
and other rather stranger birds.
To be presented to and see
what new computers do for me.
They spoke of DIMMs and SIMMs and RAMs
and integrated wireless LANs.
I didn't understand a word
and left the whole event unstirred.

But lunch was free and coffee hot
so total loss the day was not.

Valentine's Day

A commercial outpouring
of synthetic adoring.
It's just one way of scoring
and essentially - boring.