Category Archives: Events

Poems for special events and occasions

Near Miss!

Near Miss!

 

On most things in life we don’t want to miss out
But here is one goody we can well do without
For yesterday the earth dodged an asteroid
An alien object we were all glad to avoid

Apparently this detritus was as big as Gibraltar
And on its path towards us it never did falter
But fortunately the closest it actually came to our home
Was about one million miles, four times a trip to the moon

Asteroids are a regular threat to our peace of mind
Space scientists keep warning us from time to time
An asteroid may unleash energy like 1,000 atom bombs
Enough, no doubt, to turn mother earth into a tomb

So let’s hope we might manage to remain asteroid free
Or else to another planet we may all have to flee
But even if we can find refuge elsewhere in space
Some other flying object might to that haven chase!

Ken Fisher

 

 

 

Pop-Up Election

Pop-Up Election

Yet another election is about to pop up
On the exercise of democracy we never let up
Apparently about seven ballots in the last three years
We have to be consulted or so it appears

I suppose we really ought not to complain
Although having to choose is sometimes a pain
Mind you it gives work for the pundits and psephologists
Although it might send us all to our psychiatrists

Democracy is certainly a wonderful thing
And many blessings to us it can bring
But is it possible to have too much consultation
Resulting in considerable public frustration?

However, I suppose once again we must do the right thing
And demonstrate, like the customer, the voter is king
As it is the electors who in the end will decide
And with the result we must then abide

Ken Fisher

 

The Foolishness of the Cross

The Foolishness of the Cross

“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing,
but it is God’s power to us who are being saved.”   1 Corinthians 1:18  

Good Friday – a day filled with poignant meaning for believers
Just the start of the Easter holiday weekend for the rest
Who can unravel the mystery of Christ on the Cross?
God’s Son dying to save us from our sins!

Those who surrounded the cross of Calvary
Gazed with a mixture of sadness and wonder
Some hurled insults, others wept in desolation
Today we don’t even swing by to take a peep

But perhaps we may pause just for a moment
Because after Calvary came the empty tomb
The unexplained conquering of death itself
Death still the taboo subject of our modern life

I wonder if this weekend we will question why and what we do?
Indulgence in  Hot Cross buns and Easter eggs might prompt a thought?
What is this all about? Services and ceremonies simply ancient ritual?
What is this foolishness? God’s lightning rod of love

Ken Fisher

 

Clocks Go Forward

Clocks Go Forward [Sunday 26 March 2017]

 

The days are getting longer, more light to bring us cheer
Threats of dark stormy winter nights, begin to disappear
Spring has come, our clocks must be advanced
At 2AM we lose an hour that our daylight be enhanced

The loss of that hour surely will be compensated
Afternoon pleasures not so readily truncated
Hobbies and pastimes in the great outdoors
Twilight no longer threatens, more leisure time is ours

As we follow the command that we all now Spring Forward
Just as in October we duly did Fall Backward
Let’s welcome the prospect of summer days ahead
And not regret the loss of one sweet hour in bed

The cycle of the year to our life brings order
Each season occupying its own allotted quarter
The changing of the clock part of that settled plan
Pity that no-one has told our friend the Weatherman!

Ken Fisher

When the Light Darkens – Once More

When the Light Darkens – Once More

Following the Paris bombings in November 2015, then Brussels in March 2016, and then again with the runaway vehicle on the Promenade des Anglais, Nice, on Bastille Day, July 2016, we are now confronted with a similar event causing carnage much nearer home, on Westminster Bridge, London.

[These verses are the same as I posted on these previous occasions.  My sentiments haven’t changed]

When life seems good and full of light
How can its days turn into night?
But that it does there is no doubt
And inwardly we have to shout

What has gone wrong, who can we blame?
Why can’t our path remain the same?
A life of praise for all its joy
No longer does our heart employ

We seek for reasons why things change
And far and wide our thoughts do range
But contemplation brings no balm
It does not cheer or bring us calm

We agonise o’er words and deeds
O’er failure to confront the needs
That might these tragedies divert
And so our sorrow thus avert

But in this time of sad reflection
No nostrum found for lost affection
And only sadness is in sight
No early hope of love or light

Thus we must journey on our way
No cure for pain our fears allay
Our only hope that time might ease
And thus restore our inward peace

But just as night will turn to day
We’ll find again the sun’s bright ray
Will slowly mend our broken heart
As warmth and love it does on us impart

Ken Fisher

Tick Tock

Tick Tock

 

Clock hands like scalpels dissecting the hours of the day
Separating one moment from another – no two quite the same
The inexorable motion ever forwards, ever onwards
Creating the past in neat segments as they begin to age

The ratio of speed between these hands remaining constant
The one more like a heartbeat’s steady throb
The other trudges with measured plodding steps
Together the record kept of each passing minute, hour and day

Tick tock, alliterative sound to punctuate the silence
Calmly marking off the day’s progression
Placid, undisturbed amidst the peace
Or maelstrom of our lived experience

Life not dependent on the movement of the clock
But both bound up in some mystical synchronization
And as the spring within our clock slowly unwinds
The body’s cogs and levers echo that inevitable slow decline

Ken Fisher

Vernal Equinox

Vernal Equinox

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Equinoxes occur twice a year
When the plane of the Earth’s equator
Passes through the centre of the Sun
On this day the Sun shines directly on the equator
And day and night are approximately equal

Today is the Spring Equinox
And our minds look forward to warmer days
And backwards, with gratitude for the receding of winter
We are filled with hope for the months ahead

An Equinox is perhaps an appropriate time to reflect
On all that has been good in life
To give thanks for its many blessings
For health and shelter and for companionship

As the buds form on the trees and plants sprout
Carpeting the land which has lain barren for long
We look forward in anticipation to burgeoning life
In field and tree, in gardens and on hillside

And these days of longer daylight hours
Afford us the chance to escape from our winter burrows
And breathe the more expansive air of the world outside
As our horizons are lifted to a wider vision

Mind you, this year the prospect has been somewhat dimmed
By the coronavirus which has cast a shadow over us all
Let’s hope that the brightening light might be matched by
A lifting of our spirits
And hopes for happier days to tome

Ken Fisher

 

 

Accidents Will Happen in the Best Regulated Families

Accidents Will Happen in the Best Regulated Families

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The expression ‘Accidents will happen in the best regulated families’
Is an interesting one and something that brings comfort to many
Because it shows that even in a perfectly ordered world the unfortunate
Incident or state of affairs can arise. Not only to the embarrassment
of the principal players but also providing a demonstration of their
vulnerability. Even of those whose reputation seems invincible

Of course, if we are being completely honest, we would admit
To some schadenfreude at the misfortune of other people
It brings us a sense of relief that we have not suffered their
misfortune. Or perhaps our own weaknesses have not been detected
And then other peoples’ problems provide much material for gossip
And analysis of how this might happen in what we thought was utopia

Perhaps a more positive outcome of these catastrophes is that
We will realise that no-one’s world is completely perfect
The prospect of falling from grace is ever present due to
Human failure or misjudgment – to say nothing of natural disaster
And we can rejoice that we are all made of the same stuff of humanity
And that we should cultivate tolerance, understanding and forgiveness

But can you really resist just a sneaky little gloat sometimes?

Ken Fisher

See also:

https://thebardofkelvindale.com/2015/10/21/schadenfreude/

 

 

 

Power Cut

Power Cut

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Today, for a brief interval, we experienced an unusual event
There was a power cut – or outage as they call it in the US
I say unusual because it seems to happen very rarely
And I thought it must simply have been a bulb
That had burned out and blown our fuses
But no, the fuses all seemed undisturbed

And so it dawned on us that our vital energy supply
Had suddenly been removed. The spark extinguished
And all at once a number of unfamiliar beeps pulsated
From devices unused to service interruption
Little red lights flashed, and LCD displays closed their eyes
Even the Smart Meter discovered it was not quite smart enough

And then one starts to wonder if other aspects of our virtual life
Have been threatened by the removal of the magic flow of electrons
What if our planned recordings on the Tivo box are sabotaged?
What about those anxiously awaited emails. The calendar
perhaps set into disarray. The reminder messages forgotten?
More important – what about tonight’s cryogenic chicken in the freezer!

Of course all of this is simply emblematic of our dependency
Without the power we have rendered ourselves powerless
No communications, no heat and light, no monitoring or control
Much of our supply of news and entertainment gone AWAL
And unless you have your home generator, how will you manage
From your nonexistent stash of batteries and candles?

Still, in days of yore humankind survived somehow
Perhaps we have all become too reliant
We cannot believe that the rupture of these vital lines
The exhaustion of non-renewable resources
Or just a simple technical glitch can thus render us hopeless
Thank goodness the power returned in ten minutes
Perhaps it was all just a brief nightmare!

Ken Fisher

Fake News

Fake News

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Fake News seems to be the latest threat
A thing truth-lovers much regret
What once purports to be good news
May credibility abuse

And bad news may be hidden in disguise
And simply be a bunch of lies
So how fact from fiction we discern
Is now-a-days of great concern

When what we’re told can’t be believed
And all the time we’re being deceived
What’s the point of news that’s fake
The clear view ahead becomes opaque

So let’s resolve truth to restore
And fake news duly to deplore
And in our press and on our lips
Honest words and faithful scripts

Ken Fisher

Hoping for the Best

Hoping for the Best

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There is little that can be added to what’s been said already
All that we can hope for is that the ship of state keeps steady
‘The Donald’ will be the President number forty-five
Let’s pray that our hopes for world peace still remain alive

After all, he has proved in the past he can run great enterprises
So perhaps all the vicissitudes of government will bring no surprises
Of course at governance he may still be an apprentice
If he told himself “you’re fired” that would be momentous

However, it seems that from today’s grand inauguration
He becomes the most powerful man in that mighty nation
And throughout the world his influence will travel far and wide
May humility and wisdom yet in his heart abide

Ken Fisher