HL II

A Sunday night in autumn
Which figures down the line
Awakened by a memory
Of clothes cut neat and fine

And the river that flows by
Was once a moorland stream
And the slipper footed raconteur
Told of his everlasting dream

A lesson in forgiveness
Among the passing of the time
Soft steps of reminiscing
To earn his five and dime

And the love that passed by
Was once a place to lean
Happy then to be an audience
To hear him picking from the cream

A Sunday night in autumn
Cool culture quite sublime
The debt is there to share
Let the punishment fit the crime

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HL I

The slipper footed artist
Steps quiet, across the stage floor
He tells of the pre-raphaelites
He is Jazz
He tells us of so much more

I believe he spoke of Rubens
And baroque, entering the door
He told of the early times
He is Jazz
He is the keeper of the score

I know he spoke of post one thing
Or was it from another shore
He mostly spoke of ample women
He is Jazz
He is the picker in the store

I hope he remembers
Of how they loved him to the core
He was irascible
He is Jazz
He is the laughter from which to pour

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Over Again

There are things which
I would change in my education
No doubt also for you
If it helps cross mine out, replace with yours

I would keep the Mathematics, and the Sport
(But not the cross country)
I was good at both, and they served me well

I would keep Art, and English
But taught quite differently
Taught by doing, not by learning
Taught by getting heaps of exposure
Taught by getting masses of positive feedback

For the sciences Physics is a maybe
(After all I did become an Electrical Engineer)
But Biology, and Chemistry are not for me
How many times have I used the table of elements
Or had to dissect a pickled big toe

I would have Conversation, Social Skills, Meditation
And something about Psyche and Psychology
Providing one with the skill set
To enable one to explore oneself

I would have an Understanding of Confidence
And how to achieve it
Also an exploration of doubt
And how to keep it in check, or avoid it

I haven’t mentioned History
Mainly because I don’t know where I stand
If it is essential then I would have to place it in context
Not simply to learn lists of names and dates
And anyway who did win the battle of Bosworth field
And did it matter (and did it matter that I knew)

Nearly at the end, yes I know
We could go on and on
But for now I turn to Music, and Religious Studies

I am at that stage of life where music, and spirituality
Both bring me great solace and inspiration
If only they could have been explored
With more imagination in my youth
Instead of being served up as something
You could or couldn’t do
Something you could or couldn’t understand
Something you could or couldn’t care less about

I will end with Creativity, whatever that means
But I would have at least one class every day
And two, on Mondays and Fridays

PS

I forgot altogether about Languages
And no wonder
In my case it was French, I hated it
And I was totally useless
My teacher was a brutal bully
Without an ounce of empathy, or an inch of style
But if it had been Rousseau, or Sartre, well yes
Then I might have gone the extra mile

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Conversation

Hello Christopher

O, hello (I wish I could remember your name)

It’s been a while hasn’t it, are you still writing

O, yes (so I must have met you at a writing do)

I so enjoyed the piece you wrote about being over there while still being over here

O, wow (some time back then, when I was intrigued by Godot)

It is difficult don’t you think, to not just follow the rules, to try to find your own style and stick with it

O, I suppose (I never did learn the rules, and as for style I never found one anywhere)

I’ve got a new collection coming out, it’s about make-up, and why it’s now women not men who wear it

O, good (I never saw originality has her strong suit, but I won’t say so right now)

The idea came to me in Venice, when I was buying a mask for the grand ball

O, indeed (another impoverished poet, I’m not sure I want to remember your name)

Yes, it will be out in spring, you will come to the launch party won’t you

O, well (who is the publisher, will I get the chance to name drop)

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Half A Mind

I open up to the physiotherapist
Say that I do want to do as he asks
But look, I just cannot move my arm

He moves it for me, without undue pain
A lot of trouble is in the head you see
Yes I say, for these past twelve months

I have been protecting my left shoulder
Bending, and shaping
In all sorts of unnatural ways

To prevent work for that muscular area
In the meantime the physiotherapist says
You have forgotten how to relax Christopher

Always you are tense
Always you are overcompensating
And yet all the while

I have been meditating
I have been learning to still the mind
Learning to be mindfully aware

But I have neglected to be aware of my body
And why should it now play ball
Right now, just because I want it to

No, no, first for sure
My body will say, Christopher
You must go through the pain barrier

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