Besieged - Richard Fleming

In this small house of ours we pray
that we and those we love remain
safe from the beast that prowls without,
its fetid breath ripe with decay
Some think it dumb. The truth is plain,
it hungers for us without doubt.

Some swear the beast does not exist:
they say that it is harmless, tame,
half make-believe, not dangerous,
a toothless creature, they insist, 
and we who fear it should feel shame
for our unnecessary fuss.

But hid behind our shuttered panes
we tell ourselves, beware, take care,
and wonder what might happen next.
The beast is monarch now, it reigns:
its pestilence roams here and there
one moment, then elsewhere the next.

Richard Fleming

Image : Thomas Woolworth Art Collections

Overwhelmed - Kathy Figueroa

I wanted to write a cheerful rhyme,
To add a rosy tint to the day,
But it seems I’m having a hard time
Zeroing in on just what to say

I’ve many a disparate feeling:   
On life, this pandemic’s cast a pall.
Its impact has left the world reeling
And I’m quite overwhelmed by it all.

Kathy Figueroa

Image : Pixabay - geralt

I Am Not A Robot - Lyndon Queripel

My hand’s been overplayed
My mind’s been X rayed
And it only drew a blank
With all my dreams expired
And my circuits rewired
I can now see in the dark
Lost in the starless night
I just fused a red light
Under planet waves I sank
Will I ever be the same
I can’t even sign my name
So I’ll have to leave a mark.

Lyndon Queripel

Image : Pixabay - Tumisu

Locked Down, Abandoned - Tony Bradley

With no Church, or Community meetings,
no Zumba, with all the beautiful girls
just waving to neighbours, from a distance
as each day, another anxiety unfurls.

With no permitted gatherings to go to,
and no family, kith or kin
I envy the company, of those in a Care Home
than this private Hell that somehow, I’m in.

Tony Bradley

Image : Pixabay - Q K

Conquerers - Joan Etoile

In the game of colonial bingo
It helps to learn the lingo
And back in the Napoleonic days
I brushed up on my Norman francaise

I was ready to jump through hoops
For Emperor Boney’s troops
They never came, though later in their place
There arrived a different master race

Jawohl! zu befehl! of course mein Kommandant!
Ich lerne deutsch to know exactly what you want
Mercifully they left and after those grim days
I perfected Cockney, Strine and Guernseyaise (sic)

I believe my language skills are assez bien
Enough to fool any dictator’s men
I must now prepare for a new wind blowing in
Yes, it’s time to perfect my rusty Mandarin

It’s not easy though, the letters are strange
Right to left little boxes swarming on the page
So I’m thinking that I’ll soon be out of luck
When I offer our next masters a slice of Peking Duck

Joan Etoile

Image : Joan Etoile/Pixabay glaborde7

Carry On Sir Tom - Diane Scantlebury

Captain Sir Tom Moore,
A hundred years was never enough,
Inspiration of a nation
Till Covid cruelly took you with its wrath,
Although none of us will last forever
It only needs a selfless few,
To set an example and lift our spirits
Show us what we ought to do,

Captain Sir Tom Moore,
Achieved so much in his 100th year,
Set the bar of hope high for others
So they’d meet life challenges without fear,
National hero, national treasure,
Accolades well deserved and won,
Your influence transcended generations
Sir Tom, your legacy will carry on.

Diane Scantlebury

Image : BBC

The Shepherd David - Stephen A. Roberts

Sir David, venerated wildlife teacher
Has now turned into an eco preacher
As we watch exotic creatures mate
He reminds us of our likely fate

When earth may no longer be able to resist
The power of the Sun’s fiery disc
He says there’ll be a drastic change of scene
To ice planet Hoth or Tattoine

Maybe it’s just the way of things
Destined to melt like Icarus’ wings
Isn’t space littered with dead worlds
Where no one heeded their wise men’s words?

Stephen A. Roberts

Image: Elizabeth Jane Gardner Bouguereau, The Shepherd David, ca. 1895; Oil on canvas, 60 1/2 x 41 3/8 in.; National Museum of Women in the Arts, Gift of Wallace and Wilhelmina Holladay; Photo by Lee Stalsworth