Thoughts on Inherited Family Trauma

There’s a school of thought that does the rounds

(How strange mixed metaphors do sound!)

That trauma mucks up DNA:

Past lives affect our own today.

 

Experiments on poor white mice

Subjecting them to tests (not nice)

Seem to prove what scares us most

New mutations in their host.

 

Their offspring, born quite trauma-free,

React to fears they cannot see

As in the genes that they possess

Incorporated is old stress…

 If this is so, then all mankind

Inherits trauma of some kind

Which must explain irrational fears

Which dog us all, quite unawares.

 

While healing therapies exist

How many want to take the risk?

We mask our demons, try to cope

And soldier on, imbued with hope!

(c) Poet in the woods 2021

The inspiration for this poem comes from Mark Wolynn

Courage - a Glimmer of Hope!

Wow, roots re-touched, rollers put in

A stylish blow-dry or a trim

Such delights are ours again

But hardly life in the fast lane!

 

Smart tattoo parlours open doors

Beauticians strive to cover flaws,

Do facials and affix false nails

With all the finesse this entails!

 

Freedom - with more friends - outside

Belgium’s borders - soon flung wide?

Though fines bring in much-wanted cash

More footling rules may be relaxed!

 

Should day trippers be allowed?

First sunny weekend – Ostend crowds!

Brussels parks - too well frequented?

Presence of police – resented…

 

As springtime sunshine casts its spell

Cooped-up all winter, let’s rebel

Our patience threadbare, paper-thin …

Though masked, les Belges attempt a fling!

(c) Poet in the woods 2021

A Glimpse of China

Gunpowder, paper, seismographs,

The art of tea, silk-woven crafts

Chinese culture can attest

Creative prowess at its best.

But what a country of extremes:

Whose one-child policy* now seems

Misguided; where are Chinese brides?

So much on its future rides …

 

I went there once, decades ago;

The Forbidden City proud to show

Vast Halls of Peace, Celestial Sky

Which so impressed my Western eye.

 

Imperialism - small, bound feet …

Wow! Hong-Kong stop where West-East meet;

Now chutzpah player on Internet

Tradition jostling with high-tech …

* One-child policy: 1979-2015

(c) Poet in the woods 2021

  

Tip-Toeing Forward ...

While sunshine makes lives less unkind

Statistics keep us in tight bind

We hang on, pending change of heart

Pent-up; when can “new-normal” start?

 

Let’s face it, we need human touch

Without it, life ain’t up to much!

Young and old and lovers pine,

But hugs are still way out of line!

 

Culture in all forms collapsed;

When will restrictions be relaxed?

While Nature, quite COVID-immune,

Awakens to its springtime tune.

 

A hooting owl in nearby branches

My brief woodland walk enhances

We tilt, just slightly, nearer sun …

Is winter’s sadness on the run?

 

It’s subtle, but with careful eyes

Each day affords a new surprise

Wee green shoots peep from window box

Soon time to advance our clocks?

 

We hold back from a springboard leap

Make lists of those we wish to meet

For coffee in a local bar …

But this is still a dream too far!

(c) Poet in the woods 2021

Touchdown on Mars!

NASA spreads its wings out wide

Seeking life on the Outside

Beyond the world we hold so dear

What the aim is, is not clear.

 

New high-tech probe makes it to Mars!

First pictures reach us via the stars

We see close to, what is remote

Top scientists take eager note!

 

The ‘Perseverance Rover’ lands

In rocky valley, barren sands

Its safe arrival makes the News

But gives rise to discordant views.

 

Meanwhile, our Earth, in dire straits

Serves War and Discord on our plates

In Myanmar and Middle East*

Starvation threatens without peace.

 

We plot and plan on Never-Never

But cannot get our act together;

The climate crisis gathers pace …

Why still invest in Outer Space?

(c) Poet in the woods 2021

* War in Yemen

Touchdown on Mars on 18th February, 2021

 

 

Isabella - the Ballerina!

Step right forward, point your toes!

Arms in basket-handle shape, cute clothes

Shell-pink tutu for our gem

A stylish art form, oozing zen!

 

The music helps keep her in step

No chassé-croisé tried just yet

But keen to show off what she knows

Proud and swanlike, off she goes!

 

Mamma, as always, points her lens

As Isabella tries fun trends

Though learning new moves can be tough

Our sweet snowflake struts her stuff!

 

Muscles must be gently stretched

Rhythmic flow and balance next

Our supple babe beams, full of grace

Determination on her face!

(c) Poet in the woods 2021

 

 

Thomas has a Midnight Visitor!

Of another milestone, I’m appraised

Thomas – seven – woeful gaze

Kneels modestly with hand outstretched;

I read his mother’s careful text …

 

First baby tooth lies in his palm

It wobbled, fell out like a charm

A rite of passage we all know

As Nature moulds us as we grow.

 

Clear sign that Thomas grows apace

And new tooth soon will fill the space.

More castles follow in its wake

Though a crooked smile is hard to take!

 

But how to make good this sad loss?

At such moments Mum is boss;

Thomas does as he is bid

Tooth soon under pillow hid.

 

At night a whirring of small wings

Tooth fairy flits and bright coin brings

She leaves it nestling in warm space

At dawn - of tooth there is no trace…

(c) Poet in the woods 2021

The Intruder!

In every age a challenge new

The months roll by, birthdays accrue

Lock-down last March - life turned to slow

Reversal of the world we know.

 

Shuffled is Life’s deck of cards

The Joker comes out top, ill-starred

Imbued with values harsh, untried;

Past winning streaks soon put aside.

 

While Aces still play high or low

The Joker upsets the next throw

Interpretation is the key

The world awaits – what will it be?

 

In no time, certainties are broken

By this unexpected token

The Game continues but our hand

Is woven with an unknown strand…

 

No Clubs or Diamonds on our path

The Hearts of many torn in half

But Spades have had their work cut out

In COVID times, their suit has clout!

(c) Poet in the woods 2021

Through February's Lens

The bird, perched high on topmost twig,

Observes the frozen field

Light gusts disturb his feathered rig

No leaves serve as his shield.

 

He bobs his head from side to side

Seeks movement down below

Cold weather means a rocky ride

Life hidden under snow.

 

Pale plume of smoke from chimney stack

Means people warm within

Blurred footprints leave a tell-tale track

Outside by rubbish bin.

 

The sun casts rays on terrace walls

And potted herbs asleep

I listen hard, the lone bird calls

Deep silence, then repeat …

 

February’s cloak is soft

It frames Dame Nature’s face

But when her frosty hat is doffed

Life will pick up pace…

(c) Poet in the woods 2021

 

The Scenic Route

I take no book on my commute

Preferring to admire the route

In peep-through sunshine, the snow gleams

Recalling other “big freeze” dreams …

 

From forest edge to Commune heart

Fewer cars than usual start

Their journey, frosted on all sides;

Near a school, excited cries…

 

These days our winter wear is bright

 Coats are rainbows of delight!

Despite the cold, birds are in song

They cheer us as we grind along.

 

Down one more slope and I arrive

Hit by the chill, I step outside;

Here the pavements are swept clear

And bands of tarmac reappear.

 

The bus engages up the hill,

With many empty seats to fill

While I trot off to rendezvous

Enlivened by this scenic view!

(c) Poet in the woods 2021

 

A Snow Commute

We wake to blanket swathes of white

Brueghel winter skies, pale light

Twigs and branches weighted, low

A frozen landscape, no winds blow.

 

All is whitewashed, glistening, clean

Though temperatures outside are mean

Courageous walkers feeling bold

Leave fudged footprints in the cold.

 

Though absent for ten years at least

Behold a new Beast-from-the-East!

The Press makes snow its clarion call

Shenanigans with vaccines pall…

 

Frozen tram tracks, cars remote

Commuters slip-slide, try to cope

Hilly streets need Alpine skill

A short trip to the shops can kill!

 

I exaggerate – but less is more

We’ll make do with larder store

While wrapped-up warm, the others set

Out, determined, on their trek!

(c) Poet in the woods 2021

Brueghel the Elder: Winter landscape with skaters and Bird Trap (1565)

 

R.I.P. Christopher Plummer (1929-2021)

The Sound of Music fades away

What a memorable screenplay!

Julie Andrews, his co-star

His wedded nun, his kids' new Ma …

 

Looks back with fondness on Von Trapp;

Christopher Plummer had the knack

Of charming all who caught his gaze

What a proud Wellington he plays!

 

Suave, polished, cultured, statuesque

A decided cut above the rest

Toronto-born, ace act on stage

Oozing charm on every page,

 

Has gently bowed out from our lives;

At Ninety-One: shock, sad surprise

But caught on film, for our delight

We can his memory hold tight!

(c) Poet in the woods 2021

A Plummer quote: Most of my life I have played a lot of famous people but most of them were dead so you have a poetic licence.

Died February 5th, 2021

Education - Ancient and Modern!

By chance, kind neighbours stop and chat

Be-masked and distanced (COVID pact);

Real contact holds the topmost place

How hearts warm when face-to-face!

 

It’s cold and rainy, we’re be-scarved

So, of each other, we see half

Yet meet-ups mean we’re not alone;

We value life sans mobile phone!

 

It’s the young I pity most;

In student times one should just coast

And mix, with learning, friendships new ...

Team sports are a bonus too!

 

But screens now play the lion’s share

With isolation hard to bear

How lucky we were long ago;

Our childhoods tinged with pinkish glow...

 

Not always and not everyone

But leastwise all enjoyed the sun

 Sharing good times with their mates …

Unabraded by the Fates*.

 

A classic line from long ago

Which those who studied hard might know

Recalled to mind as memory stays …

But who still learns by heart these days?

(c) Poet in the woods 2021

* Book 1 of the Aeneid

Then and Now

How lives have changed! In olden times

(Before I started writing rhymes)

We skipped outside, played Hula-Hoop

Bought comics or devoured a book,

Practised on a pogo stick

Or heard on 'wireless' each new “hit”.

 

There were record players for LPs

We played at tag or climbed up trees

Invented stories with our friends

Shared magazines and tried new trends

Grabbed a pencil – made a sketch

Or memorised some well-loved text.

 

All that has now gone by the board

As computer sales have soared;

On-screen links replace real chat

Tweets make letters seem old hat!

What’s happened to imagination?

Like winter it’s in hibernation!

(c) Poet in the woods 2021

Roll Call on February 1st

The days roll by, a new month starts

February: short - with hearts!

Has much to promise, but with snow

Its entry in our lives is slow …

 

Youth unemployment, no vacations

Borders closed by many nations

In Myanmar - a coup d’état;

Have Hong Kong protests gone too far?

 

With health now put in pride of place

The US shows a kinder face

Though early days, Hope spreads its wings

Fingers crossed for brighter things!

 

BREXIT and price hikes increase;

Bushfires in Oz, earthquakes out East …

Hidden somewhere is good news

But as yet, I find no clues!

(c) Poet in the woods 2021