A View From My Window In India - Elizabeth Fisher

I look out of my window
And what do I see ?
Poor tiny children in misery.
Rags and tags,
Hands begging, eyes emploring,
Please give me a chipati
I need it, I'm starving.
You promise tomorrow
Yesterdayis a word forgotten and never spoken.
These poor little children a rag for a bed.
The sky is illuminous,
Bright orange the sun,
The palaces and beauty surround everyone.
The contrast of beauty and ugliness is rife,
This is India the reality of life.

Elizabeth Fisher

Pondering On My Peas - Jenny Hamon

I planted peas the other day
All neatly in a row
And since that day I’ve waited
For my peas to grow.

I’ve propagated peas before
And watched them grow a treat
But these just do not want to grow,
I think it’s lack of heat.

I’ve waited for a few weeks now
But nothing’s reared its head.
I wonder if they’re too cosy
All tucked up in their bed.

Now I’m getting to the stage
Where I should start to see my peas,
So I begin to poke and prod
Where my peas should be.

There’s not a pea in sight,
Not even the remains
Oh what has happened to my peas?
Have they dissolved in all the rain?

Perhaps they have grown downwards
Instead of to the light.
Maybe my peas have travelled
As there’s not a pea in sight.

Maybe they’ve gone to Pakistan
Or even down to Perth
But one thing is for sure
They’re not here in my earth.

Jenny Hamon

The Old Brown Carpet - Kathy Figueroa

Hurray! I don't have to vacuum
The old, brown carpet, anymore!
At last, I managed to get it
Removed from the dining room floor!

It wasn't at all difficult
Deciding it really must go,
Its age was indeterminate
But many years of use did show.

Once, it might've been quite stylish
And served to enhance the decor,
But I couldn't wait to lug it
Out of that room and through the door!

Perhaps it was quite attractive
Back when the dinosaurs did roam
But it was a big dust magnet
That I wanted out of my home

Always emitting fuzz and lint,
Maybe 'twas made of such ..and dirt.
I knew that it just had to go
When it made my eyes start to hurt.

Now, if you should chance upon me
And I'm wearing a great big smile,
It's due to my jubilation
About the dining room ..floor tile!

Kathy Figueroa

Little Life - Diane Scantlebury

You didn’t ask
To be here
Little life,
So delicate, so fragile,
There were hopes
And promises for you,
We all waited
So long for you,
Little one,
What potential
You could have had,
You could have reached
The heights,
Or experienced the lows,
Breathed the air,
But life’s struggles and twists
Were not for you,
Little sweetness,
You didn’t make it
Into this world
Full of its own craziness,
Now only your memory
Is left
And our sorrow.

Diane Scantlebury

Butterfly Lovers - Diane Scantlebury

Up and around
Over and down,
Who observes them?
They don’t care,
Locked in ritual frenzy
Butterfly lovers,
Trace giddy circles
Into the air,
Nature’s calling
Driving them onwards,
They have no choice
But to follow,
For its life that inspires
Butterfly desires,
To continue the cycle on.

Diane Scantlebury