A Mixed Bag as usual

 A Mixed Bag as usual

 

After a disgraceful night on the lash

One would do well to view my epodes with suspicion

It was great to be out with friends again

After nearly 2 years under confinement to our homes

And even The Bard warned against killjoys

Moderation in all things

Along with moderation

Nothing very new then

I am a man

The good the bad the ugly

But I am I think if viewed correctly

Amusing

I give the pantheon a good giggle

As my old mate said

You might be a f%#K up

But you’re OUR F&*k up

I overreach

Then lacerate myself with spells of anxiety

Then a period of calm

Then an intense feeling of elation

That causes me to overreach

On the high wire act that is a man’s life

Then the panic again and self-recriminations

Then anxiety without object

Then abatement

And so on

It’s a bumpy ride

For me and for others

But I guess it’s my ride

I am thus-wise constituted

I am profoundly embarrassing

And irritating

An incessant

But as one of my additional needs kids vouches

I am patient and kind

So what is all this?

What does it add up to?

Some maintain that on a preordained day

I will be judged

As to my sum worth

Like a final tax return

But so too I will live for a while

In the memory of others

As my late mum said

It’s not what people do or say that you remember

It’s how they made you feel

I hope I’ll leave some nice feelings

I wish to uplift the world

From its downcast ways

And give the meek some belief in their humanity

The job of the poet

Is I guess not to be one thing

But as Les Murray said

To look at life from a new angle

Each day

Yesterday before the wild session

I bought a vinyl copy of the great Neil Young album

On The Beach

And the marvel of Greville Records

Said that he’s waiting for someone to write a piece

About how important music and the creative arts

Have been to us during our

Extended periods of lockdown

I don’t take direction well

I pursue things from weird angles

But anyway thank you for the music

As ABBA once put it

Thank you for the Art

We need you

& Life would be unendurable without you

Thank you

For the way you make us feel.

 

©Malachi Doyle 2021.