Category: General

A lighter underground experience

X-rays


An eerie hoard
scattered and layered,
resembling torn paper
floating in earth:

untarnished gold
sunk in sod
packed into time
imbedded like pain

What makes a treasure?

Fluttering in the dark
contours of earth,
shapes overlap on
the film’s black field

The soil sectioned
and sliced to preserve
not riches
but position:
each secret
of gold and garnet
constellated
to the others

Their stance a story

Ballad of the Buried Miners

Deep within the earth we lie
Untouched by winds of human sighs,
Cocooned in our charcoal chambers,
Safe from what killed and maimed us;
Not for us, the sunlit glade,
The musk rose scent, the dappled shade,
Instead, the stooping, hellish crawl
The caged descent; the monstrous haul;
No rubies, gold or diamonds there,
But foul and fiery, fumed filled air
And then, a blast: get out, get out!
Yellow mist; muffled shouts;
Life’s blind fury was released
To slowly make our breathing cease;
Our flesh and eyes have cracked and peeled,
Our bones now crumble, crack and yield;
We have retained our still bright souls,
Mid sulphur, slate and God of coal;
We, Britannia’s warrior slaves
Through furnace, steam and ocean, gave
Linen, cotton, things to buy
For carpets, secrets, oils and cries,
We screamed and groaned in holes unseen
To build a burnished empire’s dream.
Now three miles under earth our bones
Are Wakefield, Wigan, Sheffield, Colne.
Remember us: we built your world
With blackened lives, with teeth of pearl.

Does this offend you?

HOW MOSES GOT THE TEN COMMANDMENTS

God went to the Arabs and said,

‘I have Commandments for you that will make your lives better.’

The Arabs asked, ‘What are Commandments?’ And the Lord said, ‘They are rules for living.’

‘Can you give us an example?’

‘Thou shall not kill.’

‘Not kill?

We’re not interested.’

So He went to the Blacks and said, ‘I have Commandments.’

The Blacks wanted an example, and the Lord said, ‘honour thy Father and Mother.’

‘Father?

We don’t know who our fathers are. We’re not interested.’

Then He went to the Mexicans and said, ‘I have Commandments.’

The Mexicans also wanted an example,

And the Lord said ‘Thou shall not steal.’

‘Not steal? We’re not interested.’

Then He went to the French and said, ‘I have Commandments.’

The French too wanted an example and the Lord said, ‘Thou shall not commit adultery.’

‘Not commit adultery?

We’re not interested.’

Finally, He went to the Jews and said, ‘I have Commandments.’

‘Commandments?’ They said, ‘How much are they?’

‘They’re free.’

‘We’ll take 10.’

There, that should offend just about everybody!!