Category Archives: Poems on the theme of Living our Lives

Poems that reflect aspects of thoughts and actions that will influence the living of our life

A I B U

 

A I B U?

Am I being Unreasonable?

Am I being unreasonable
When I ask what’s for tea
As I’ve had a large lunch
And a snack will do me

Am I being unreasonable
When I expect you to pay
I coughed up all week
And it’s your turn today

Am I being unreasonable
When I say put on a clean shirt
For the job interview
Surely that’s not going to hurt

Am I being unreasonable
When I say you’re getting fat
It looks to me you’re becoming
A bloated plutocrat!

Am I being unreasonable
When I say it’s my turn to choose
Which TV channel to watch
Without giving excuse

Am I being unreasonable
When I say your hair’s turning grey
We ‘re all getting older
That’s all I say

Am I being unreasonable
In whatever I say
Perhaps I should pipe down
And call it a day!

Ken Fisher

Wake Up Call

Wake Up Call

You don’t need to be asleep to get a wake up call
Early in the morning, right through to dark nightfall
It’s a metaphor for a message that promptly galvanizes
The significance of which our mind sharply recognises

Like the canary in the coalmine or the flash before the thunder
Wake up calls are warnings that can smash our peace asunder
Just when we thought our lives were quite neatly sorted
Our happiness baby is peremptorily aborted

Wake up calls can come to us in various disguises
And almost every one harbours some surprises
A message from the bank about your account being overdrawn
Informing us their financial support has now been withdrawn

The failure to land a job we thought was in the bag
Our promotion prospects thwarted by this pesky red flag
A routine check at the doctor’s casting doubt upon our health
An unexpected setback which confronts as if by stealth

When you attempt to sell your house at a much inflated price
Lack of interest from buyers could cause much sacrifice
You will then wake up to harsh market fluctuations
Which may put paid to your lofty aspirations

Worse than all of the above is the threat of climate change
For this there is no solution we can easily arrange
From this scary wake up call none can simply hide away
And retreat into the shadows as on glorious Groundhog Day

Ken Fisher

Whatabout?

Whatabout?

Have you noticed how the unconvinced
Always have to ask – “what about”?
Their scepticism pervades all their thinking
They simply must find some flaw, some snag
Some doubt to cast on the validity
Of any proposal or plan or strategy

Perhaps they think they are being clever
In highlighting some omission or error
Which renders your suggestion untenable
What about the cost? The inconvenience?
The deconstruction of the existing situation?
Have you not considered the stumbling blocks?

Perhaps these naysayers might claim
They are only being prudent
That caution should precede action
That hesitation might be wiser than precipitation
They might even ask the complete showstopper
Whatabout doing nothing instead?

Enterprise is based on taking risks
Agreed that potential dangers should not be overlooked
But if whatabout is worth anything
We should reckon whatabout the failure to act?
Whatabout the missed opportunity?
Should we change the question from whatabout to howabout?

Then we might start living!

Ken Fisher

 

 

 

 

 

The Tyranny of Positivity

The Tyranny of Positivity

When you feel down, your spirits low
Friends say forget that negativity
A smiling face you need to show
The way of positivity

It matters not what be the cause
Of your deep dark emotion
Dolefulness gains no applause
Forget that wrongful notion

They rarely think what be the hurt
That prompts the heart’s malaise
The issues that so disconcert
Our peace of mind can faze

The world expects a smiling face
Keep calm and carry on!
Positivity you must embrace
No matter what’s foregone

Even when our heart is sinking
Midst angst and endless fear
That power in positive thinking
Will wipe away your tears

So positivity exerts its force tyrannical
The fragile soul yet insensible
Of such strictures puritanical
All weakness reprehensible

Let’s all learn a little toleration
Of those thus stigmatised
That for lack of affirmation
They no longer be chastised

Ken Fisher

Sorry for Interrupting

Sorry for Interrupting

It never fails to irritate
When journalists keep interrupting
Those whom they interrogate
I find it most disrupting

Why don’t they give the interviewee
The chance to state their case?
Showing that the don’t agree
Denying them airspace

The hacks find fair game in politicians
Holding their feet to the fire
Countering their claims and petitions
Butting in promoting ire

Why are speakers for a cause asked on
To a programme to tell their tale?
If not allowed to educate or to inform
Hosts make sure their own views prevail

So let programme makers heed the plea
Give the guests some time and space
Don’t talk over them, let them be free
Let the audience hear their case

Ken Fisher

It’s Now or Never!

It’s Now or Never!

On the lifting of Covid Restrictions July 2021

It’s now or never declares the PM
Lift all restrictions, breathe free again
One wonders if that’s really wise
Is the bug still on the rise?

Yet not only with Covid but in life at large
Comes a time, horizons to enlarge
Grasp the reins, control regain
Take the profit or the shame

In such moments be prepared
‘Though the risk might make you scared
It’s now or never, don’t hesitate
Step boldly, espousing fate

So if today you vacillate
Doubting makes you prevaricate
Upwards and onwards forward facing
It’s Now, not Never, you’re embracing.

Ken Fisher

 

 

Fiat Lux

Fiat Lux

[This poem is not about a small top-of-the-range
Italian mini car!]

Let There Be Light

Let there be light was God’s command
Ordained by His almighty hand
In those primordial days He spoke
Within creation’s masterstroke

And ever since the need for light
To bless humanity with sight
Was recognised by all mankind
Illuminating heart and mind

Light to shed on darkest mystery
Understanding gained through history
Of whom we are, how to survive
Sustaining life that we might thrive

From simple crafts and artifacts
Technology embracing facts
Enlightenment shed on our way
Progress the watchword of the day

In modern times let there be light
Penetrating all that would blight
Abounding threats to our welfare
Preventing freedom everywhere

Thus Fiat Lux become our plea
From tyranny that we be free
World poverty, widespread disease
Compassion’s light might bring release

Let light illumine every soul
Rational thought our minds control
The commonweal our deeds promote
Our attitude inspiring hope

Ken Fisher

Next Slide Please!

Next Slide Please!

I am sure we all view this man with affection
His cautious messages for our protection
Graphs and diagrams to keep us informed
Of threatening trends he ensures we are warned

He sometimes spars with the bold PM
Who this health hazard would roundly condemn
But Prof Whitty says we need play the long game
If this menacing beastie we hope to contain

This boffin is a statistician’s dream
Explaining what the baffling numbers mean
With line graphs and pie charts one thing’s for sure
The nation’s predicament is no longer obscure

With PowerPoint he has ably displayed
Hard facts that sometimes make us dismayed
But we would be wise to simply think twice
Before we ignore his prudent advice

As he progresses through his presentation
On nasty viruses’ latest mutation
He reminds us the battle’s not yet won
And the need for vigilance not quite done

The rate of vaccination should bring hope
Assuring us all that we are going to cope
The double jab is our route to salvation
From this pandemic still engulfing the nation

So let’s pray that in the course of time
The next slide might point to conditions sublime
When the graphs show the bugs almost disappear
And Professor Whitty proclaims we need no longer fear!

Ken Fisher

 

 

 

E.S.G.

 

E.S.G. = Environmental, Social, Governance

E.S.G – may not mean much to you
But for companies quite significant
Important issues to consider
Of which they must be vigilant

In this modern woke world
When public much more aware
Of how firms are cherishing
This world for which we care

In the past, profit was the only aim
Must please rapacious shareholders
But what about the hard-pressed workers?
And other worthy stakeholders

For far too long Executive pay unbridled
They claimed huge bonuses, believed they were entitled
Now stakeholders shout ‘Out of Order’
When they create such world disorder

Directors must now consider
The company’s impact on nature
And all in the wider society
Expecting  governance more mature

So rich CEO’s and executives
Can no longer just ignore
The effect of their business activities
On this wide world’s poor

Climate change, pollution, corrupt practices
Have recently been pushed to centre stage
Good governance applied in all their ventures
From discrimination to the living wage

And in order to monitor progress on these measures
Companies coerced to report on these benchmarks
Scrutiny applied by Government and many other parties
Thus E S G become the acclaimed hallmarks

Culture in any organisation
Set by those at the top
But if the moral tone is right
That’s not where it stops

Ken Fisher

Influencer

Influencer

Over the past few years
You may have become aware
Of a new social phenomenon
That is the ‘Influencer’

These influencers mainly
Exercise their sway
Through Social Media
Computerised evangelists!

Their power rests in their ability
To condition our thoughts and actions
Primarily our purchasing decisions
But their influence can affect
Every aspect of life
From before the cradle
To after the grave!

But is this really a new idea
And is it benign or deleterious?

Here are some long-standing influencers:

Teachers and Preachers
And marketing men
Mothers and Fathers
And friends who know them

Instructors and Coaches
Who help us improve
Parking attendants
Who tell us to move

Lecturers and Readers
And lofty Professors
Even Priests who for the pious
Might be their confessor

Doctors and nurses
Concerned for our health
Financial Advisers
Who look after our wealth

Driving Instructors
To get us on the road
With due regard
To the Highway Code

YouTube performers
Who show us how
To solve any problem
We might have right now

Spin doctors and lobbyists
Cannot be ignored
Despite expressing feelings
That some might deplore

Aunties and Uncles
Who know it all
Tell us to take care
Lest from grace we may fall

From cradle to grave influencers opine
Ante natal clinics tell us if the baby is fine
Long before we get old we must set up a pension
And a funeral plan can avert future tension

Face Book, TikTok , Instagram and the rest
For the persuaders these are the tools of their trade
From these modern platforms their message goes forth
Their power to beguile us out on parade

And so it would seem the list just goes on
The range of influencers is ever so long
Perhaps we should pause, and briefly think twice
Why not just simply take our own advice?

Ken Fisher

Ticking Time Bomb

Ticking Time Bomb

Ticking time bomb, ominous expression
Laden with foreboding
Signalling some impending disaster
Primed with inexorable doom

Who set the clock ticking?
Trigger to delayed destruction
How long the time delay?
Before the inevitable calamity

Too easily we assign ‘time bomb’
To some future assault to health or fortune
As if our actions or omissions
Must lead to inevitable tragedy

Thus politicians and power brokers
Have laid up the powder
For the ineluctable explosion
Heralding the slaughter of the innocents

All this seems a little over-hyped
Threat of ticking time bomb
Used to highlight our folly
Ignoring the supressed peril

So what should be done?
Stride boldly into the minefield
Sever the fuse, eliminate the menace
Or tiptoe through hoping to remain unscathed

Perhaps we might discover
The ticking time bomb
Is a mere chimera
A threat without substance

Ken Fisher

 

WOW!

WOW!

 

WOW, that expression of huge surprise
Signified by widening eyes
The unexpected news event
Shock reaction we can’t prevent

Somehow we did not anticipate
Arrival so precipitate
Of good fortune landing in our lap
Much more likely some mishap

WOW signifies astonishment
At unforeseen accomplishment
Who would have known? We must exclaim
The loser joins the hall of fame!

WOW expressed in admiration
At some achievement, new creation
Amazed we stand with mouth agape
As novel artifact takes shape

Cynics sometimes express WOW
Can’t believe the why and how
Their WOW has such a hollow ring
Of your praises they won’t sing

But mostly WOW means genuine praise
As the flag they keenly wave
Well done, plaudits much deserved
Congratulations unreserved

Ken Fisher