Life is short
Smile while you still have teeth
Thought for the day
Author: Ian Hunter
I retired from the energy business in 2014 and started writing poetry. At first I shared my writing with family and friends. Then I set myself a challenge to write a poem every day for a year. After meeting that goal I just kept going and started this blog in 2021. I hope you enjoy reading my poems. Remember happiness is just a state of mind and poetry is great nourishment.
Forest whispers
I walked through a forest
Carpeted with leaves
Shimmering in the soft sunlight
Glowing faintly like fireflies
I paused beside a tree
Images flooded my mind
My mother stood beside the tree
My grandmother was beside her
I saw myself as a young boy playing nearby
These were not my memories
They were the tree’s memories
As we had all passed by there many years before
I picked up a handful of the golden leaves
Carried them home
Put them in a basket
They whispered to me daily
Stories from my grandmother
Sage advice from my mother
Silly murmurings from my young self
It was haunting so eventually I had to do something
I took the leaves back into the forest
Paused in front of the same tree
The tree said its time for you to move on
I nodded and dropped the leaves
Covering my ears as I ran away
I reached the edge of the forest
Looking back at the carpet of leaves
I called out to them
But I could only hear a whisper in reply
I was very tempting to go back
But I never did
Voting in a democracy
Voting allows you to influence the direction of your community, state, and country by choosing leaders who align with your values and vision for the future.
Voting is a fundamental right and responsibility in a democracy. By participating, you’re exercising a civic duty and actively contributing to the system that governs society.
Your vote helps ensure that elected officials represent the interests and needs of all citizens, including those in your demographic or community.
Voting holds leaders accountable for their actions and policies. It empowers citizens to reward good governance or demand change when necessary.
Elections impact laws and policies that directly affect your daily life—ranging from healthcare and education to civil rights and economic policies. Voting helps safeguard and advance these rights.
So please vote in your next election
Vote early and vote often
One pedal at a time
The sun had barely risen when Mia strapped on her helmet
The air still crisp with morning dew
She swung her leg over her bike and pedaled down the quiet street
The rhythmic hum of the wheels spinning beneath her was soothing
A familiar sound she had come to love
Fields of golden wheat stretched out on either side of the road
The path ahead was a mix of gentle slopes and sharp curves
A challenge she relished every morning
This ride was her break from the noise of daily life
Only the sound of her breath and the steady beat of her heart kept her company
Mia pushed herself harder up a steep incline
Her legs burning with the effort
She smiled despite the pain.
This was what she lived for
The feeling of her body pushing against its limits
The exhilaration of reaching the top
Knowing she could conquer anything
She paused at the summit
Catching her breath and taking in the view
The world seemed to spread out endlessly before her
The sky a brilliant canvas of pinks and purples as the sun climbed higher
For a brief moment time stood still
All the worries that had weighed her down faded into the distance
With a final glance at the horizon she leaned forward and began her descent
Wind whipping through her hair as she flew down the hill
It was freedom in its purest form
A feeling only cycling could give her
As she reached the bottom her heart was still racing from the thrill
She knew she would be back tomorrow
Her ride was more than just a routine
It was her way of reconnecting with the world
One pedal at a time
Do not let yesterday steal your today
If you had a bad day yesterday
Do not waste time dwelling on it
Today’s time is precious
Do not let yesterday steal your today
If you had a truly great day yesterday
Do not waste time dwelling on it
Today’s time is precious
Save yesterday as a memory to be savored later
Do not let yesterday steal your today
If your yesterday was just an average day
Do not waste time dwelling on it
Today’s time is precious
Do not let yesterday steal your today
Today is always better than yesterday
Because we all live in the now
Tree chatter
Cooler days and chilly nights
Summer is officially over
Leaves are starting to turn orange
Nature has decided to turn a page
Start a new season before winter
Trees stop growing to conserve energy
Which begs the question
How do they know?
What triggers them to prepare for winter?
Who taught them?
Do mother trees school their offspring?
Are tree roots connected to a web?
Communicating with each other constantly
Receiving tree weather messages
Here is today’s tree weather report
Getting tree bulletins about the impending seasonal changes
Its time to start turning your leaves orange
Organizing tree beauty pageants
Who has the biggest and brightest leaves?
Perhaps swapping tree selfies and chatting
Browsing tree social media
Scrolling the pages of TreeBook
Gossiping about passing humans
Look at this silly fellow playing golf in the rain
Reporting horror stories of chain saw tree massacres
Humans came in waves felling down an entire forest
Announcing the birth of a new baby tree
Mr and Mrs Fir Tree are pleased to announce
Recording obituaries of fallen trees
He lived a long life and will be missed
Lectures on how roots can seek out water
Go deep and follow the scent
Indigo Gin
In the glass so crystal clear
A spirit smooth, without a peer
Juniper whispers with citrus sings
A symphony of herbal strings
A splash of tonic and bubbles rise
A touch of lime to tantalize
Cool and crisp with subtle grace
A fleeting hint of the forest’s trace
In quiet bars or gardens green
Gin’s allure is softly seen
A timeless friend to those who sip
It graces every gentle tip
Through ages passed from dusk to dawn
Gin’s quiet spirit lingers on
A drink to amuse like a liquid song
In every glass it feels so strong
Hail the mighty Empress 1908
I surrender to your pea flower infused juniper fate
Some drinks give subtle flavors that ebb and flow
But I love the gushing taste torrent of INDIGO
Just get naked
Rich London women
Relocate to the Scottish highlands
To make new age organic whisky
For drinking in a sea of sweet cocktail juices
But this is not how whisky was meant to be consumed
It should be drunk eyes wide open in its bare naked glory
No need to add juices or spices
These modern organic lady distillers
Probably make love fully dressed in the dark
Pleasures should not be gift wrapped
Just get naked
the cheese just slid off your cracker
Things happen when you least expect them
You are happily driving down the road
Listening to your favorite music
Laughing and joking with your wife
When you notice blue flashing lights behind you
A heart stopping moment
You pull over to the side
She says you drank too much at dinner
You tell her to stay quiet
Winding down the window and hands on the wheel
The state trooper approaches
You were doing 45 in a 30
You decide not to argue and just say sorry
License and registration please
He takes the documents back to his patrol car
She says he is going to do a sobriety test on you
You politely ask her to stay quiet
The officer returns moments later
Thrusting your documents towards you
Next time slow down he yells
As he races back to his patrol car
Then speeds off lights and sirens blazing
That was a stroke of luck you say
He must have been called away on something more important
She just rolls her eyes
You take a deep breath
Continue driving home but without the music
Dark unlit roads and it starts to rain
She says promise me you will drink less at dinner
Yes dear you answer without sincerity
That was not luck you think to yourself
It was just mean to be
As you take a tight turn
A deer runs in front of you
You swerve but still smash into the deer
The car spins off the road
Sliding into a ditch
Nobody is hurt but the car is stuck
Still think you are lucky? she says sarcastically
You drive too fast when you have been drinking
Soon after you see flashing lights approaching
The cheese just slid off your cracker
no more corners
I walked to the mailbox
The square door had four corners
I took out a pile of mail and a box
Every letter was rectangular
With four corners and two sides
The box was rectangular
With eight corners and six sides
I piled one hundred letters into a rectangle
I now had a box shaped pile of mail
Their two hundred sides became six
Their four hundred corners became eight
Where did all the missing sides go
Who stole three hundred and ninety two corners
I opened all the mail
Rectangular papers inside
Soon living in a rectangular trash can
I opened the box
Inside was a ball
With no corners and just one side
The ball was a tight fit in the box
Its one side touching all six sides of the box
If you could inflate the ball
It would eventually touch all the corners inside the box
Its one side would become six sides and eight corners
This is far too many sides and corners
I much prefer the round ball
I am going to start sending people lots of mail
In circular envelopes with just two sides and no corners
The envelopes will all be different sizes
So you can stack them into a ball shaped pile
no more corners
Cheeky Monkey Poetry 