Poem From A Picture: ‘A Firm Distant Memory’

IMG_1953 (1) — Flower festival Crowland Abbey, Lincolnshire, England. Summer 2019

It’s iconic now,
England versus West Germany,
countries no longer existing,
old adversaries meeting
on a dappled pitch in late July,
still embroiled in controversy;
such as goals which were not goals,
views strictly dictated along partisan lines,
or the keen eye of a Russian linesman.

copyright Francis Barker 2020

Haiku: Just A Game?

high angle photo of grass field — Photo by nmr hrd on Pexels.com

It was once a game
Now corporate enterprise
No entertainment

Poem: Pretence

the-ball-stadion-football-the-pitch-47730

The big political guns are out.
It’s left versus right,
red stands up to blue,
the elephant against the donkey.
Entertainment for you, my friend,
at the bar munching on peanuts
and sipping weak beer.
I watch your blank eyes stare,
drooping jowls shudder with each bite
as the TV screen morphs into sporting mode.
It’s defence against offence,
the clash of grid iron titans,
all steam and bluster
like the wrestling ring.
And still you sit transfixed,
a bulldog chewing his bone.
I hand over a bill worth nothing
and exit this world of pretence

It’s iconic now, England versus West Germany, countries no longer existing, old adversaries meeting on a dappled pitch in late July, still embroiled in controversy; such as goals which were not goals, views strictly dictated along partisan lines, or the keen eye of a Russian linesman.

Rate this:

Share this:

Like this:

It was once a game Now corporate enterprise No entertainment

Rate this:

Share this:

Like this:

Rate this:

Share this:

Like this:

It’s iconic now,
England versus West Germany,
countries no longer existing,
old adversaries meeting
on a dappled pitch in late July,
still embroiled in controversy;
such as goals which were not goals,
views strictly dictated along partisan lines,
or the keen eye of a Russian linesman.

It was once a game
Now corporate enterprise
No entertainment