Colleen’s 2019 Weekly #Tanka Tuesday #Poetry Challenge No. 156, #Poet Choice

TUESDAY TANKA!

It’s the first of the month and you know what that means! Poets choose your own words.

PLEASE support the other poets by visiting their blogs and leaving comments. Sharing each other’s work on social media is always nice too. Don’t forget to share your poetry in the comments. It’s been great seeing all your poetry in one place!

So it’s thanks to Colleen Chesebro for the prompt, rules, pingbacks, and poems here. Lonely and Pity are my chosen words this week. Again I have chosen a Tanka. In this time of Christmas with all the hype on the media, the homeless, the poor the ill tend to be forgotten.

Living on the street
 Cold, hungry, looking at feet.
No one cares for me
None show any sympathy
Good will to all, oh! really.
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We have a new badge from Colleen too, thank you Colleen it’s lovely.

Crisis at Christmas

I originally wrote this in December 2013 but it is still relevant so. Have revamped it a little. I make no apologies for repeating this poem most years.

Image found here

I hope it won’t snow this Christmas

It’s one of my biggest fears.

It was so bitter last year even

Thinking of it makes me shed tear.

The homeless won’t be eating Turkey with all the trim

Unless they find a charity shelter which they can get in.

The people at the shelters are angels from up above

They give their time and plenty love.

They really are saviours they really do so much good.

They give warmth and comfort, dinner and even Christmas pud.

OH! why are they out here I hear you say.

There are lots of reasons, have you got all day?

Dave got made redundant the bills he couldn’t pay

So the bank stepped in and took his home away.

His wife could not stand the B&B that the social offered them

So she took the children off to live with her mum so Dave won’t see them again.

image found here

Jen, she was cheeky girl always having fun

Staying out late and playing up in the end it got too much for her mum!

After a big row one night in the summer she asked Jen to go,

So she is struggling alone out there.When your homeless it is amazing how fast your friends all go.

image found here

Rob well his story is very sad,

It all started with his drinking then he discovered drugs. He became violent and everything turned bad.

He fell out with his mother’s boyfriend who told him he had to go

And then threw him out into the December snow.

The reasons are legion you can take your pick,

People who loose their jobs because they became sick

From parents who can’t cope

To addictions that make you loose all hope,

Parents or family who beat you, family who will not stop at a touch

They want you to give them way too much.

This may all seem morbid this may all seem too sad

I hate to tell you all, things can be so very, very bad.

People young and old see their hopes and dreams unfold and vanish in clouds of smoke

As they end up on the streets lost and without any hope.

So enjoy your Christmas parties, your families and your Yule tide fare

But as you raise a toast remember the homeless ones out there .

YOU CAN DONATE OR HELP HERE

The Wedding of the Year.

They have told us we have to go

But where to I just don’t know.

There’s going to be a wedding here.

The wedding of the year.

This is the worse time for me.

Temperatures are dropping you see.

And as there’s lots of rain.

My blanket’s soaked, that’s a pain.

I can’t get work because I have no address

I can’t always wash so I smell and look a mess

The sight of us may mar the day for Megan and Harry

They don’t want to see the homeless on the day they marry.

So the Royal Borough of Windsor
are going to make us go.

To where we do not know.

Close your eyes Prince Harry and Megan Markle

Then you won’t see life as it really is outside the castle.

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The wedding is in May.

Will we be cleared away

Banned from entering the town

Will they bar us, will they hose us down.

The shop keepers, who don’t like us, will be celebrating

This must be the chance to clear us out for which they have been waiting.

Harry and Megan are people of the world

They’ve seen us in the doorways huddled and curled.

The council want us moved at this time.

Because the wants of, royals and business are prime.

They have told us we have to go

But where to, I just don’t know.

There’s going to a wedding here

The wedding of the year.

I am afraid that the police will move us on

Where will we go, our little bit of shelter will be gone.

I have no problems with the happy couple .

I just wish they knew how much we struggle.

But we’re the bottom of the pile

Out of their sight as they wave and smile.

Christmas Fayre

http://www.colourbox.com/preview/4706745-121377-illustration-of-cart-full-of-gift-box-christmas-decoration.jpg

Rush, rush, buy, buy, spend , spend get this, get that get it all

Grab those treats no matter how large or how small.

15 days to Christmas how much luca  can you splash.

How far can you thrash the cash?

Lots of booze too much food, expensive presents. You don’t need, Don’t you think all this show is  crude and full of greed.

Don’t forget the fairy lights

They sparkle on the Christmas Tree lighting up the nights.

Push that trolley girl, grab those deals spend all your lolly

Oh! it is all so happy it is all so full of light,

Open your eyes, love, see the plight.

google images

Makes no difference to this young lad

Lost and missing the family Christmas he never had.

He is tired and cold out on the streets no home no job  barely 20yrs old.

No peace or joy  for him out on the streets  so cold.

Or there is Kay she was born on a Christmas Day but that only seems to make it worse,

She was made to feel less important than a curse.

Her house was always short on  happiness  not to mention care

It was always worse at Christmas. Lost and unloved it’s not fair.

So many people homeless in the cold,

Hungry, dirty  poverty isn’t fussy some are   young   and some are old.

You will pass them in the street,

As you are rushing, off  your friends to meet.

You might give them a sideways look,

Slip them some change, there that is you off the hook.

As you enjoy your festive fayre stop and think of those poor souls, outside freezing, is that fair.

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http://www.centrepoint.org.uk/what-you-can-do/volunteer

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http://www.workplacegiving.co.uk/giving/

Lost and lonely at Christmas this happens every year,

It is not nice to know,it is not good to hear.

So avert your eyes so you don’t  Know

Or see that sadly every year the numbers grow.

Why does this happen why do they leave their home,

Is it fair that they feel it is safer  to be out on the streets alone.

Look around you, see what you have, lovely children , husband and  home

So spare a thought, or even better lend a hand

To these  people all alone. Give some time I promise you, you will feel grand.

 

Christmas Fayre

Christmas fayre

Rush, rush, buy, buy, spend , spend get this, get that get it all grab those treats no matter how large or how small.

Thirty five days to Christmas how much luca  can you splash. How far can you thrash the cash? Lots of booze too much food, expensive presents. You don’t need, don’t you think all this show is  crude and full of greed.

Don’t forget the fairy lights they sparkle on the Christmas Tree lighting up the nights.

Push that trolley girl, grab those deals spend all your lolly Oh! it is all so happy it is all so full of light , open your eyes, love, see the plight.

google images

Makes no difference to this young lad which ever way up he feels lost and missing the family Christmas he never had. He is tired and cold out on the streets no home no job  barely 20yrs old.

Or there is Kay she was born on a Christmas Day but that only seems to make it worse, she was made to feel less important than a curse. Her house was always short on  happiness  not to mention care it was always worse at Christmas. Lost and unloved it’s not fair.

So many people homeless in the cold. hungry, dirty    poverty isn’t fussy some are   young   and some are old.

You will pass them in the street, rushing , busy off to parties your friends to meet. You might give them a sideways look, slip them some change, there that is you off the hook. As you enjoy your festive fayre stop and think of those poor souls, outside freezing, is that fair.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://www.centrepoint.org.uk/what-you-can-do/volunteer

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://www.workplacegiving.co.uk/giving/

Lost and lonely at Christmas this happens every year, it is not nice to know,it is not good to hear. So avert your eyes so you don’t see that sadly every year the numbers grow.

Why does this happen why do they leave their homes , is it fair that they feel it is safer  to be out on the streets alone. Look around you, see what you have, lovely children , husband and  home so spare a thought, or even better lend a hand to these  people all alone. Give some time I promise you, you will feel grand.

 

 

THE HALF LIVE

Last night I watch part of a TV programme , at first I was only half watching when suddenly it demanded my attention. It was about the underworld society that is growing in America. The were in Las Vagas and feet from where the rich and  famous and wanna be’s were in the casinos and hotels living it up and throwing more money into gambling than these poor people living in drains have ever had!  The were not just old vagrants there were men and women who just cannot afford to have a roof over their heads. Families, mothers with children. They are living in the storm drains, apparently there are hundred of miles of these drains, they have minutes warning if water rushes through the drains.

According to the reporter there are many many Americans one pay check away from homelessness. I know we have the same problems in this country but it was the stark division between the haves and have nots in Las Vagas. I was astounded  here is a link to it.  http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8239319.stm   I hope I am not offending anyone by publishing this  but our world is spliting in to the rich and the poor. Remember I have already said that I know my country also is going in a similar direction!

I wrote a poem a couple of weeks  ago which I could easily written for that programme so I am going to reprint it with this blog. I do not make a habit of making social comments but this struck me hard and has made me think , forgive me for saying we all need to look at our lives and our governments.  So God Bless us all and help the poor, especially  at the time of Thanks Giving and Christmas .

HALF LIFE

We live in shadows hiding in doorways shying away

from electric light’s glare unhappy in the daylight

longing for the night

writhing in pain if caught by the suns rays

struggling hard to keep out of it’s way

digging deep holes is how we spend the day

WE KEEP OUT OF SIGHT

tunnelling this way and that deeper and deeper we go hardly

needing our eyes anymore that is why we now call this life

we lead half life you on my left and you on my right

we use drains now to move around

we need to be private afraid to be found

this half life to which we’re bound.

I DID NOT WRITE THIS POEM BECAUSE OF THE PROGRAMME BUT I AM REPRINTING IT BECAUSE OF THE PROGRAMME.