In the Home of the Homeless by Angkarn Chanthathip

In the Home of the Homeless by Angkarn Chanthathip

1.

One window among many
reflects events    mirrors rubbish
a broken roof lashed to its frame
collapsing and crumbling as it struggles on

the crowded world of the homeless
the community of the world could offer
the edge appears    missing a family  nearly recovered
the house stays cold   alien   hardship returns

to have your roots yanked out from under your family tree
to wander through different times and places
strength ebbs away    destitution    charity
impressions blur    hardship approaches

one essence in submission   those people
one essence    many differences
fallen    absconded    overgrown    neglected    just 'a case'
the times shift and change    on the move

'refugees' through circumstance
pressure wears you down    constricts you
until aborted hope collides with strength
grit marks fade    never entirely

grimy windows in the heart of the city
exist    go    are   strange    lonely    distorted image
portrait    identity    'ghost'    living
twisted shadow    blamed

the house you can't find    can't return to
the hope that sustains    the dream that warms
under the flyover    pavement    have mercy
image fuses    eroding love

possessions gone    roads closed    promises broken
can't go forward    can't go back    trapped
public place packed with the poor
the centre cordoned off

'refugees' through circumstance
melt into disarray
Sanam Luang Park* trespassed    altered
expands into every corner of the city

2.

look around aimlessly    against the world
instinctively connected    release
rubbish mounts    cast offs    abandoned
destitute    deprived    humiliated

looks unsettled like an unfinished house
dream no further than a home
a road    an alley    a side street    like a sign
nothing is what is seen

* Sanam Luang is a large public park in the centre of Bangkok that became 'home' to a large number of homeless people who were then 'cleansed' from the area.

The Darkest Hour by James Baldwin

The Darkest Hour by James Baldwin

The darkest hour
is just before the dawn,
and that, I see,
which does not guarantee
power to draw the next breath,
nor abolish the suspicion
that the brightest hour
we will ever see
occurs just before we cease
to be.

Passing Go by Judith Pordon (Cherie)

Passing Go by Judith Pordon

We are no longer invisible.

Winds from without are drafts,

and within are gases no longer quiet.

We are booming towards infirmity

with endless varieties of discomfort.

Ankles puffing, jaws slacking,

patience thinning, hormones fading,

carpal hands, knees resisting stairs.

Doctors twirl scalpels,

ready for our aging, breaking bodies.

We want our faces stretched,

our spectacles lineless,

our self image blurred

so that we die

without getting old. 

Level: Lower Sec

Themes: Age, Self-image

Stylistic Features: Allusion, Cumulative Listing

Siren Song by Margaret Atwood

Siren Song by Margaret Atwood

This is the one song everyone

would like to learn: the song

that is irresistible:

the song that forces men

to leap overboard in squadrons

even though they see the beached skulls

the song nobody knows

because anyone who has heard it

is dead, and the others can't remember.

Shall I tell you the secret

and if I do, will you get me

out of this bird suit?

I don't enjoy it here

squatting on this island

looking picturesque and mythical

with these two feathery maniacs,

I don't enjoy singing

this trio, fatal and valuable.

I will tell the secret to you,

to you, only to you.

Come closer. This song

is a cry for help: Help me!

Only you, only you can,

you are unique

at last. Alas

it is a boring song

but it works every time.

#freeverse #allusion #greekmyth #feminism #alllevels