61. Random
The murmuration wheels
And screeches in the sky
Purely by chance you say
Random works in mysterious ways.
These magnificent birds will climb
And travel for weeks on end
To reach their home in the Arctic
Purely by chance it seems.
The heart in my chest keeps beating
A hundred thousand times each day
I just hope it’s not as random
As some new theories claim.
Is God really playing with dice?
Then He’s certainly got a way
Of stacking the cards
If it’s as random as you say.
62. AD 2068 — Hotel earth — last guest has just checked out
Our dear world is dying
There is no denying
Murdered by men
Scheming and craven.
Can a world though recover
If there's no one to bother?
The answer is yes
Sadly, now humanless.
No voice to announce
Our final farewell
On a planet fallen speechless
With no one to tell.
It didn't come easy
To finish mankind
We tried every trick
That came to our mind.
Is it a terrible thing -
For the last human being
To whisper goodbye
That no one can hear.
Good night son of man
Sleep softly on
Dream on dreamless sleep
In night without morn.
To be fair, all the odds
Were against you, poor sod
If it hadn't been this
It would have been that.
But you narrowed your chances
With nuclear advances
Not to mention the mess
Of industrial cess.
You redoubled your bets
At the last chance saloon
You can live on this earth
But not on the moon
Don't blame the poor leaders
You so carelessly chose
Please look inside
A heart that's grown cold
While whispering lies
Of soft comfort to children
While mortgaging to hell
Their lives and their planet.
Sleep on my dear children
The die has been cast
The dawn is not coming
The night's here to last.
63. Clouds
I spent the lovely April day
Examining a cloud from May
It danced and glided cross he sky
It left and didn’t say goodbye.
That’s the thing with clouds, I heard
They take their leave without a word
But just as quietly they wander in
And frame the blue with smile and grin.
I know there’s times they’re cold and blowy
The winter clouds are white and snowy
But April clouds are a different lot
Reminding us of all we’ve got
The busy birdsong hymns the meadow
Above green fields and in the hedgerow
Home to the foals with silky hair
Swinging tails without a care.
Good to be alive and good to see
The annual miracle for you and me
Despite the crisis and the woe
Nature blossoms like times before.
64. The birdies song
Have you heard the birdies sing?
It’s their time and it’s their thing
It’s a busy time, they’re on the wing
Busy, busy builders while nesting.
They’re chatting and a chirping
Squawking, crying and whistling
With accents gathered from far and near
Their springtime chorus is so clear.
Another year, hopes springs again
Looking forward to summer days
Lazy evenings lengthen, the sun reigns
Hope and courage course our veins.
Nature takes and nature gives
And giving comes so naturally
The birds and bees and you and me
Let us embrace eternally.
65. World of wonder
The world today is full of wonder
Tender smiles and gentle glances
Female forms and joyous dances
Delighting a sun-filled world.
On days like this when god has smiled
When locals kiss and embrace awhile,
A time of little dogs and funny kids,
Adoring parents shop in sunny outlets.
The tiny mercies that life can give
When the sun is high and the sky is blue
Spring bursts through for it’s arrived
And not retreating soon.
The loving glance, the laughter of friends
The bond of friendship breaking down our isolation
The lurch to love in little steps
The daily miracles of tender care.
66. An uneasy silence
It’s nearly twelve month’s now
Since the last man drew breath
Six months before his wife
For women were ever stronger.
An eerie silence now returns
To a blighted earth by man
And yet some birds remain to sing
A sad and mournful song.
Lonely god can only wonder
Where did it all go wrong
It wasn’t even Adam or Eve
Who let off the nuclear bomb.
No, that exercise in insanity
Had to wait for centuries later
When ‘advances’ allowed the hand
To pull the fatal lever.
So nature returns steadily
As buildings yield to ivy
The city’s quiet now
Perhaps it’s god’s will somehow.
67. Let’s board the train
Let’s board the train
No hell!!
We’re all on board!
We left that station
Fifty years ago!
No returning
To the old days
No point pretending
Any other way.
We’re on the train
To climate hell
Tickets bought
Some years ago
And off we slide.
First class carriage
Or third class
Arrive same time, Madam
A ticket to return, you say –
Of course you can
But there’s no train back
Look behind!
They’re taking up the track.
So settle back,
Enjoy the journey.
It won’t end well
Best be happy
Best be cheery
No point crying
Truly deary.
Don’t be sorry
Don’t be teary
It’s a good old journey
For the most part.
The start is best,
Well obviously,
But it’s not all bad
In company.
We’ve got each other, everyone
Man and baby, orangutan
Little lamb and mountain goat
All aboard like Noah’s boat.
Except this time
There’s no happy ending.
God’s fed up –
He’s not spending
More time on us down here
When there’s another star
Somewhere, over there
More deserving.
Ah well, enjoy the ride
Put on the TV
See what’s inside
As the carriage clatters
On and on
Along the tracks
Pray god we avoid the cracks
Arriving at the final station.
68. The last train
The final train has left the station
All passengers on board
The clock strikes midnight
With doors and windows closed.
The blinds pulled down
Lest children see
What no one should reveal
Man’s awful destiny.
For some who know
And some who fear
With dread anticipation
The final destination.
On and on the final train
Puffs and pulls its load
Not if but when
It runs out of road.
Why now make merry
In the carriage
And drink while dining
As the train goes down?
Recall the dignity and bravery
Of an icy night a century ago
The pluck ban played hymns
While the ship slipped under.
The last of humanity is on this train
There’s no one at the station
Bon courage mes petits
Hush! It will soon be over.
69. Sorry Trees
Strident sounds of biting chainsaws
Break the summer peace
Cutting down the very trees
That guarantee the human race.
Creation weeps in bloodied sobs
While frenzied midday mobs
Cry ‘crucify him’
On a tree
Cut specifically
This happened more than once
Obviously.
In years to come, long after
The earth has fallen still.
Occasionally a tree pines
For the extinguished ones
Who once tried to cut it down
But only cut themselves.
The clowns.
70. Deck chairs
With years of experience
The waiter moved the chairs
Here and there upon the decks
All the better to observe the ice
That gleamed and glistened
Under the starry April sky
Of nineteen twelve.
First class seats for first class folk
To view up close the ice and stars.
No space alas for deadbeats.
Champagne glasses sparkled
As the conversation wandered
To the weather in New York.
A century later and still no wiser
Still busy moving the chairs
For the first class fares.
As for climate change –
Who gives a care?
Why should we learn to panic?
As the orchestra plays
On the decks of the new Titanic.
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